Shockwave
by Franz Nerdlinger
Summary: Tech invents a device to depower the villains of Acmetropolis, but when it backfires, they have to deal with more enemies than ever. When Rev's brother develops his own abilities, will he be enough to help them fight back? TechRev Please R
1. Chapter 1

DISCLAIMER: I don't own Loonatics Unleashed, or any of the characters within the following story. Well, excluding the characters I've come up with myself.

SYNOPSIS: In an attempt to revert everyone affected by the meteor back to normal, Tech creates a device to mimic the effects of the meteor in reverse. Unfortunately, it's not as reverse as he intended.

WARNING: This story will eventually focus on a relationship between Tech and Rev. As such, this story contains a homosexual/slash/yaoi relationship, or whatever you'd like to call it. If that's not your cup of tea, go drink somewhere else. Rated T for minor language and violence. I doubt there will be any sexual things occurring other than a few kisses.

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It was a calm day. Acmetropolis hadn't been threatened for almost a week, which was only 5 days away from a new record. Well, if it stayed "saved," that is. Some new psycho was always popping up and wreaking havoc. However, if Tech had anything to say about it, that wouldn't be happening much anymore. The coyote was working hard to finish a device which would restore everything and everyone to their pre-meteor selves. No more superpowers, and no more super villains. In fact, if his new invention, the "Impact Reversal Ray," worked as he hoped, everyone on Earth could get back to their normal lives. If it worked, which he strongly hoped it would.

However, work on the ray was more than likely to be delayed. The arrival of a certain red blur made sure of that. Papers were scattered about the coyote's lab as Rev took a spot next to him, looking none-too-pleased with what he saw. Tech's invention was coming along smoothly, and it looked as though it would be finished in a matter of hours.

"Hey-Tech, -are-you-sure-you-want-to-go-through-with-this? I-mean, -it's-not-like-you-have-to-build-this-ray-thingy-because-we-could-still-protect-Acmetropolis-and-keep-our-powers-and-it-could-be-cool-and--" Rev spoke, the onslaught of words assaulting Tech's poor ears. However, he reached out and silenced the roadrunner by clenching his beak in his fist.

"Look, I know what you're getting at, but it's for the good of everyone." Tech explained, not looking any happier than his friend, "Once everyone affected by the meteor's back to normal, we can do what we want without worrying about saving the city all the time. And besides, it's a 'ray,' Rev; it'll only affect who we aim it at." The roadrunner looked relieved at that statement; they'd still be able to fight against any intergalactic threats like Optimatus.

"Well, -that's-a-relief. I-thought-we'd-all-be-powerless-and-then-we'd-be-easy-pickings-if-Optimatus-ever-escaped-and-decided-to-destroy-us-again. That'd-really-stink, -you-know." The coyote nodded, and directed his full attention back to his work. This was Rev's unspoken cue to leave the lab and allow Tech to finish the ray gun.

"Well, -okay-then, -Tech, -I'll-see-you-later. Hope-the-Power-Reversal-Ray-thinger-turns-out-alright." Rev rambled, although a glare from the coyote stopped him, "Okay, -I-guess-I'll-go-now. Later!" In a flash, the roadrunner was gone, the lab's door hissing shut behind him. Sighing, the coyote continued with his work, working carefully to ensure that he fashioned the device properly. Even the slightest error could spell disaster for the world. If he was lucky, he wouldn't be interrupted again any time soon.

Days passed, and Tech still hadn't completed the device. Fortunately, nothing else had come up, so he had plenty of time to work. The others went about their own agendas, doing what they normally did on their days off. Slam had already ordered a few pizzas, which they'd been receiving free of charge for half a year or so now. Saving the man in charge had certainly led to a few perks. Duck had been using his powers at every opportunity he got, even after he'd been told that they'd still be keeping their abilities. That stopped after Slam chased him down, however; even Duck wasn't willing to make Slam angry more than once.

On the fifth day, the day the city stayed saved for 11 days and set a record, Tech had finally finished his Impact Reversal Ray. He almost pranced back into the meeting room, carrying the device carefully as he approached the main table. Ace, Lexi, Duck, Rev, Slam and Zadavia were all present, waiting for Tech to make his presentation. Well, _almost_ everyone waited. Rev had been twitching slightly in his seat as the coyote drew out his entrance with uncharacteristic pride. He must have been incredibly confident in his new invention. In any case, the roadrunner zoomed up beside his coyote friend, pummeling him with a barrage of questions.

"How-does-it-work? Is-it-going-to-cure-everyone? Are-you-sure-we'll-be-safe-in-the-tower? How-did-you-make-it?" Rev asked, his mouth going a mile a minute as he found his beak clenched shut by Tech again.

"Rev! Watch what you're doing!" Tech exclaimed, letting go of the roadrunner's beak, "If you'd knocked the ray gun out of my hands… well, let's just say one of us could be a few powers short." Rev gulped at that thought, and quickly returned to his seat. It was never good when Tech's inventions didn't work exactly as planned. Of course, the only times they went wrong was when someone used them improperly or tampered with them beforehand. Fortunately, neither had occurred this time; they were going to be enjoying quite a few more days off.

"Alright, since everyone's curious about the Impact Reversal Ray, I guess I'll give you a little explanation." Tech began, excitement shining in his olive eyes, "After the meteor hit, I figured it might be a good idea to get a sample or two of it… y'know, for future projects at the Institute. However, after all the stuff we've gone through, I've thought that we could use a bit of a break. So, I found a way to use the dormant energy within the meteor in a reverse process. Instead of bestowing powers to people, it'll remove the powers of all those wackjobs who've been trying to destroy the city. All we have to do is hook it up to the weapons defense system, and we can send the ray all over the city."

"As long as you're certain it'll work. I assume it hasn't yet been tested, correct?" Zadavia asked.

"Well, no, I haven't tested it yet. But I'm sure it'll work. Besides, it's a lot safer than obtaining curium." Tech explained, "Besides, we'll never know until we try, right? C'mon, let's go test this thing out." He looked a lot less excited after Zadavia pointed out the device's only flaw. They still had no idea if it would work the way he planned, but the theory of it was flawless. It could only possibly work as he planned. After all, he was a genius. Everything he did post-meteor worked perfectly… didn't it?

By the time they reached the lab, Tech was tempted to call off using the Reversal Ray. That one comment had shaken his confidence; he had to make sure that the device would work properly. Hopefully he wouldn't have to test it on himself. After having his powers for the past few years, the idea of not having them anymore felt bizarre.

"Hey, Tech, you okay?" Ace asked, jolting the coyote from his troubled reverie, "If you're not ready to test it out, you can just take it back into the lab and fix it up until you're satisfied." But the coyote shook his head, insisting that he had to try it out. After all, he'd hyped up the device so much, he figured he didn't really have any other choice. They had to test it now, or he'd probably never get around to doing so.

He broke from the group and approached his weapons defense system, which hadn't seen use since Lexi blew up Melvin's space ship. However, he was certain that it would be able to spread the beam throughout the city. The meteor fragments still possessed a large well of power. Removing the special abilities of all the super villains in town wouldn't even use up half of the space debris' energy.

"It's all set up. Let's all hope this works." Tech said, anxiety evident in his voice. The others felt a little more than worried that Tech wasn't 100 percent confident, but they decided not to talk him out of it. Even the chance that they could take a vacation was too good to pass up. Duck had spent the last two days trying to wrangle everyone into taking a cruise, although those plans might not come to fruition. With one last calming breath, Tech pushed the button, closing his eyes as the device whirred into action. After a moment or two, the ray finally started working, a loud shockwave resounding from the top of the tower. The blue energy of the ray shot throughout the city, fizzing out a mile or so outside of city limits. Several pulses of energy emerged from the top of the tower, before Tech deactivated the device.

The tower was surprisingly quiet after the ray's use, everyone seemingly uncomfortable or unsure of what to say. It was Duck who broke the silence, however, not being one to sit around quietly.

"So… did it work?" He asked, feeling the tension in the room dissipate after his comment. However, it was soon replaced with uncertainty and curiosity, most of it coming from the scientifically gifted coyote.

"Honestly… I'm not sure." Tech sighed, looking defeated, "I guess we'll just have to hope for the best." Rev rushed up to his friend, patting the green coyote on the back gently. His momentum made it a lot less than gentle, but he meant well.

"C'mon-Tech, -don't-worry. Your-inventions-always-work; we'll-be-able-to-take-a-summer-vacation, -except-that-it's-not-really-summer-or-anything-and-then-you-can-maybe-get-out-of-the-lab-for-a-bit." To the roadrunner's surprise, Tech didn't clamp his mouth shut, or tell him to speak slower. Instead, a small smile appeared on the coyote's face, and it soon bloomed into a full grin.

"You're right, Rev." Tech smiled, "Let's get started now. I'm due for a day off." He ran out of the lab, looking much happier than he'd seemed in… well, a long time. Rev enthusiastically followed the coyote, although he ended up passing him. The others decided that they may as well join their teammates, and soon, everyone was headed off to the local pool. Zadavia opted to sit out, since someone needed to stay at the tower. She could also ensure that Tech's invention had worked. In all honesty, she hoped that the Loonatics could take a well-deserved break. They needed it.

* * *

So, I hope that those of you who decided to read enjoyed it. That's not all there is to it, since I've got a lot planned for the story. But honestly, I'm just hoping everyone was in character. So, please send in your reviews, flames and constructive criticism. Well, maybe not so many flames. After all, it's my first fan fiction submitted to the site, and I'd appreciate the reviews and criticism. Anyway, have a good day, and I hope you guys stick around to read how the story progresses.


	2. Chapter 2

Woo! I have at least one reader! X3 Anyway, I'll get started on the next chapter; don't want to skimp out on content, and whatnot. Anyway, Rip's first appearance is in this chapter, so I hope I do him and his crazy parents justice.

Anyway, just so everyone knows, I still don't own Loonatics Unleashed, or any associated characters.

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"Make-sure-you-behave-yourself, Rip." Ma Runner said, looking over the back of her seat at her youngest child, "Remember-what-happened-last-time? Well, I-guess-you-do, since-you-were-the-one-who-was-wrecking-the-city, remember? You'd-better-behave-yourself-or-we'll-ground-you-for-so-long-that-you-won't-have-a-social-life-until-you're-57. Ooh, such-an-odd-number, isn't-it? 57-57-57-57." A certain moody roadrunner, lounging in the back seat of the car, rolled his eyes. He'd gotten this speech at least a dozen times, and it rarely strayed from its core message. The time he'd finally have a social life was always different, though.

"Yeah, yeah, mom, I gotcha. I already learned my lesson, anyway." Rip sighed, his expression predominantly one of sadness, "Besides, I think Rev said that the parasite 'mysteriously vanished' after he got it off me." He sighed again, looking out the window as he propped his head up on the fleshy part of his palm. It had been a while since he'd seen Acmetropolis, although it had only been about 6 months. That entire time, he'd been grounded and stuck in his room, even though he'd salvaged the Robo Amigo, and helped keep the family business from falling out due to a mass toy malfunction. Sure, he was the one who caused the malfunction in the first place, but he fixed his mistake, right?

Apparently, it hadn't been enough for his parents. While they were proud that he could join the family business, they were still mad that he'd tried to ruin it first. It hadn't even been his fault; the parasite had just given him the power to do what he wanted in his heart of hearts. After all of it had happened, he still wasn't sure why he'd done what he had. Had he really wanted his dad's attention so badly that he was willing to destroy an entire city? It all seemed so stupid. He couldn't say that it hadn't worked, however. His parents had kept a vigilant watch over him ever since then; the only time he escaped it was when they went to bed or he snuck out.

Even when he felt that he had to escape his parents and their suffocating love, it hadn't been worth it. Everyone in his school had seen the incident, and they ostracized him out of fear. If he'd been crazy enough to try to take out the city, who could say that he wouldn't start something in the halls. Only his closest friends had stuck with him, and even they kept him at arm's length. Rip had never felt so alone in his life. Another sigh left the bony teen, and he found himself looking around the car. It was an older model, with pleather seats and ambient lighting. The car ran smoothly enough, but his parents always complained that they couldn't go fast enough. He knew that the only reason they owned a car was that he and Rev had been skipped by the whole "roadrunner speed" gene. Well, Rev had found his own way around that, but that still left normal, plain, boring Rip.

The vehicle started to rumble for a moment, and Rip's first assumption was that something was wrong with the car. However, as he gazed out the window, he saw that the pedestrians were feeling it as well. An earthquake, perhaps? No, that wouldn't make sense; they were in a hovercar, after all. But… what was going on, then? Rolling down his window, he managed to catch sight of the trouble. A massive wave of bright blue energy was rippling out through the city, moving at roaring speed betwixt buildings and citizens. Instinctively, the roadrunner shielded his eyes, just as his father slammed on the breaks. Rip shot forward, bashing his head hard into the back of his father's seat. It hurt like hell, but it wasn't enough to knock him out. What knocked him out was the impact of the car behind them rear-ending them, shooting him forward with even more intensity than his father's breaking.

The Loonatics had quickly abandoned all their vacation plans upon seeing the state of the city. Instead of the usual cheerful city, they were greeted by one full of crashed cars, disoriented citizens and malfunctioning hardware. Apparently, the ray hadn't been quite as harmless as they'd thought. Tech felt his stomach twist into knots, guilt tearing him apart worse than any physical method had done so. Well, being blown up by explosive charges had also been rather painful, but he'd have to put guilt a step or two above it.

In any case, they went around making sure everyone was doing well. Despite what they already knew deep down, they asked the citizens they aided what had happened, and they consistently received the same answer. Every person they talked to told them about a ripple of bright light, accompanied by an incredible gust of wind. Car alarms had gone off - some were still going - and people had been literally swept off their feet. They were comparing it to the original meteor, although they hadn't seen anything fall from the sky. For the moment, they decided to leave out the fact that they had caused the damage; they really didn't need bad publicity.

After a half-hour of wading through destruction, the Loonatics received a message from Rev, who'd gone to check damage ahead of the group. At first, it was impossible to understand him, considering he was speaking much faster than usual. When Rev was going more than a mile a minute, at least one member of the team was able to understand him. This could only be a bad sign.

"Rev, calm down!" Tech cried, "You've gotta slow down; we can't understand you!" A few seconds passed, and a strange, choking sound reached them. At first, the Loonatics looked curiously at one another, before their communicators relayed a loud wail from the roadrunner. It wasn't hard to determine what the choking noise had been seconds ago; Rev had started crying.

"Rev, what's wrong?" Ace asked, the first to get his mouth back in working order.

"It's… it's my family!" Rev sobbed, the words flowing at normal speed, "They're all out cold, and I think Rip's… I think he's bleeding! Please, someone, come quick!" The roadrunner must have been really out of sorts; he could have probably brought his entire family back before any of them reached him. However, they reacted on instinct, rushing toward their distressed comrade. It took a few minutes to find him, considering their jetpacks were considerably slower than the speedster was.

About 5 minutes after receiving Rev's message, they found the distressed roadrunner, wearing a circular hole in the pavement as he paced worriedly. His family members were splayed about their vehicle, unconscious. True to his word, Rev's little brother had hit his head hard enough to draw blood, and was starting to look pale. Tech pried the doors off with his abilities, knowing that Rev's parents would be mad that he wrecked their car. Saving their lives just wasn't a good enough cause, was it? Sighing, he let the others move in and rush them out, watching as Slam picked up Rev's parents and the roadrunner rushed in for his brother.

"We've got to get them back to the tower, ASAP!" Ace ordered, "Rev, you go back to the tower with Slam and Tech. Lexi, Duck and I will make sure no one else got hurt too badly and meet you there." Tech and Slam nodded, and headed back to headquarters. If Rev had waited for Ace to finish his speech, he would have nodded as well. However, he was already gone, and had probably already handed his brother off to Zadavia.

The day had just gone downhill for our resident green coyote. Not only had his invention wreaked havoc on the town, it had inadvertently hurt his best friend's family. What if… what if the Impact Reversal Ray had killed Rev's younger brother? Rev would never forgive him, he was certain of that. Tech was racked with guilt; none of his inventions had screwed up so monumentally before. Okay, so once he'd flooded the Acmetropolis Institute when a device he'd been working on exploded. A few mops and emergency drains later, and everything was okay. If Rip or Rev's parents died, a mop wouldn't make any difference. He wouldn't have to worry about Rev forgiving him, he realized; forgiving himself would be much more difficult.

After breaking a few speed laws, Tech and Slam arrived at the tower, only to find a very upset roadrunner. Zadavia had already gone off to the medical wing, apparently taking Rip with her. Slam lumbered off in that direction as quickly as he could, leaving the coyote to console his friend. Tech sat down next to Rev, somewhat unsure of what to do. He had never been good at cheering people up. Either people didn't understand what he meant, or he just happened to say the wrong thing.

"It'll be okay, Rev… it's probably just a concussion. He'll be fine if we got to him in time." Tech said nervously, apparently choosing the wrong words. Another racking sob left the roadrunner's beak, and he slumped face down against the meeting table. The sound only made Tech feel worse. He'd never seen Rev cry, and, of course, the coyote just had to be the one to cause it. Guilt just continued to pile up on him, squashing his chest and tying his innards into knots. Tears began welling up in Tech's eyes, and he had to excuse himself. He couldn't possibly have screwed up any worse.

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Well, there's the second chapter. It turned out a lot more emotional than I'd meant it to. In any case, hope you enjoyed, and don't forget to review.


	3. Chapter 3

The story, she continues! If I keep this up, I should be done before the week is over. XD

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It was a long night. Ma and Pa Runner woke up a few hours after arriving at the tower, each asking a flurry of questions. As Tech had predicted, Pa was upset that his car had been taken apart, even though Ace promised that Tech would repair it. Ma was more worried about Rip, especially since her moments before the crash had been spent lecturing him. Fortunately, they hadn't been badly injured; they only had a few minor bruises where the seatbelts had been. Rip was stable, although he hadn't awakened. He could probably use the rest, anyway.

With his family safe, Rev finally calmed down, although he was still worried about his brother. Besides, he had been told to leave the room because he hadn't stopped pacing. It wasn't entirely his fault; he always paced when he was worried. Inwardly, he wondered what he should do for the rest of the night. Beating himself at table hockey wasn't as fun as it used to be, and he couldn't think of anything that he wanted to watch on television. That left him with only one option; hang out with Tech. The coyote always had something cool lying about, and he was fun to speak with.

"Hey-Tech! How-are-you? I'm-feeling-much-better-than-I-was-earlier, I-guess-I-really-needed-to-let-all-that-go-and… Tech?" Rev slowly stopped talking, a puzzled expression playing on his face, "Tech, are-you-okay? You-usually-find-a-way-to-shut-me-up-when-I'm-talking-too-much-for-your-liking, which-is-often, but-you-still-haven't-stopped-me-yet. Are-you-feeling-okay?" The roadrunner slowly made his way over to Tech, who was standing near one of the large, foreboding computers. A loud sniffle rang through the laboratory, making the speedster look even more confused.

"Tech, are you crying?" Rev asked, speaking at a slower tempo to ensure that his question couldn't be brushed aside.

"No." Tech snuffled, his voice cracking, "I'm fine." The genius quickly wandered over to his workbench to grab a few tissues, blowing his nose into them. A slight smile formed on Rev's face; Tech had always been a terrible liar. The roadrunner strode over to his friend, patting him gently on the back.

"It's not your fault, Tech. You couldn't have foreseen any of this happening." Rev said, gently rubbing the coyote's arm, "I don't think you'd have gone through with it if you could have, anyway." He smiled warmly at his friend, receiving a sulky stare from the coyote.

"I should have tested it first, though, Rev…" Tech sighed, removing his friend's hand from his arm, "I could have seen how powerful the ray actually was… I guess it's back to the drawing board, then." Another sigh escaped the inventor, who looked dejectedly down at his tools. Rev soon found himself frowning, and he grabbed the coyote by his arm and spun him around. It probably hurt, but Tech would live.

"Don't-you-go-feeling-sorry-for-yourself, Tech." Rev scolded, "You're-the-smartest-guy-I-know, not-to-mention-the-most-dedicated. So-what-if-one-invention-didn't-work-exactly-as-you'd-envisioned-it? I-know-for-a-fact-that-you'll-keep-trying-until-it-works-and-works-safely. So-suck-it-up, you-big-baby." Tech glared at his friend at that last comment, although he only received a coy grin in return. Rev was only trying to cheer him up, or at least stop him from spiraling downward in self-pity. It worked, or at least somewhat.

Rev, by all circumstances, was probably the one who needed cheering up. His family could have been killed in a car crash, for crying out loud. Yet there he was, trying to make his friend feel better. It made Tech feel worse; he didn't deserve a friend like Rev. He knew for a fact that he'd be upset with anyone who almost killed his family, whether they were a friend or not.

"I guess I'm lucky." Tech said aloud, a small smile gracing his green-furred face, "I'd probably be perpetually glum if I didn't have a friend like you. C'mere!" He reached forward and pulled Rev into a headlock, gently digging his knuckles into the roadrunner's skull.

"Oh, so-it's-noogies-now, eh? I'll-show-you-how-to-give-a-noogie!" Rev laughed, pulling out of Tech's headlock and ensnaring the coyote in his own. It was meant to be innocent fun, but it stopped being fun after only 5 seconds. The roadrunner accidentally took it too far, his own noogie accidentally starting the coyote's head on fire. He must've been going too fast. Tech cried out in surprise, and started trying to put the fire out. Rev acted a little faster, however, and soon doused his friend with the fire extinguisher.

Tech looked rather displeased, although he had good reason. His skull hurt, and he'd been set ablaze. The lab was now full of white foam as well, a mess which he'd have to clean up before he could use the room again.

"Sorry, Tech!" Rev apologized, "I-didn't-mean-to-do-that, I-just-kinda-got-carried-away, is-all, and-I'm-sorry-I-made-a-mess-of-your-lab-and-your-head-and-your-tools-and-" The coyote moved forward and gently shut Rev's beak, sighing softly.

"Nevermind, Rev." Tech said, "Just help me clean up. After that… we can play a game, or something."

"How-about-table-hockey? I'll-kick-your-butt-and-look-good-doing-it." Rev challenged, grinning at his friend.

"As soon as the lab's clean, I'll make you eat those words." Tech replied, grinning right back Rev.

* * *

A soft moan announced Rip's reawakening, the scrawny teen sitting up in his bed. At first, he was only aware of two things: one, his head hurt, and two, he was cold. It was only then that he realized that he was only clad from the waist up. Embarrassed by his bony body, he pulled up his blankets, despite the fact that he was alone. Aside from his parents, that is. They were both snoring, and were both occupying beds a few feet away from his own. Looking around, he wondered where he was, although the city skyline refreshed his memory. They were in the Loonatics' tower, their base of operations.

Normally, he would've got up and started exploring, but thanks to an IV, he was stuck in bed. Had he hit his head that hard? Reaching up, his fingers brushed against gauze, and he realized that he must've taken a quite a hit. His chest also hurt a little, as did his hips. Damn seatbelts. Even if it had saved his life, it had also given him several painful bruises. Sighing, he laid back down, his head throbbing in pain. Why was it that every time his family went to Acmetropolis, something bad always happened? At least it hadn't been his fault that time.

After a few agonizingly long minutes, Rip heard footsteps. Whoever was walking around was heading toward the medical wing. Inwardly, he hoped it wasn't Rev; his older brother wasn't exactly gentle when he was excited or happy. However, to his surprise, a tall, blonde woman walked in, her purple high heels clicking loudly against the floor. She looked surprised to see Rip awake, considering she jumped slightly. However, unlike the roadrunner, she'd kept her composure. Rip had shouted in fear, and thrown a conveniently located orange at the woman.

"Please calm down, Rip," Zadavia said calmly, catching the orange and setting it down on a nearby table.

"Wh-who're you?" Rip asked, trembling, "And how do you know my name? St-stay back!" He shifted into a defensive position, although they both knew he wasn't dangerous. A gentle smile graced the woman's lovely face, and she gently pushed Rip's arms back down to his sides.

"My name is Zadavia," Zadavia stated, "The Loonatics work for me, you see. I know your name because of the incident with the Biotech Parasite, Rip."

"Of course." Rip grunted, looking upset, "So, what're you here to do? Are you gonna give me a lobotomy? I like my brain in one piece, lady." The roadrunner glared at the blonde, although the only response he received was a giggle.

"Don't be absurd," Zadavia smiled, "I'm just changing your bandages. Don't get yourself worked up; you took quite a blow to the head." She gently removed Rip's bandages, although they did stick to the scab from his head injury. They all came off after a gentle tug, although it still hurt the teen's head. After the cut was sterilized - despite Rip's protests - his bandages were replaced, fresh and soft.

"Um… thanks." Rip said, coughing embarrassedly, "I'm… uh… sorry I threw that orange at you."

"It's… how do you young folk say it? It's no big deal, home slice." Zadavia said, posing like a young musician she'd seen once on television. Unfortunately, she only succeeded in making Rip laugh. That was easily the worst imitation of teenagers he'd seen in ages. No one had said anything like "home slice" for hundreds of years. His laughter died down after about 10 seconds, considering laughing hurt his chest. Damn seatbelts.

Not long after Zadavia's impression, Rev stopped by, and gave his younger brother a suffocating hug. He ended up leaving almost immediately after, mostly since Rip cried out in pain. That only woke up his parents, who managed to mimic Rev's previous actions exactly. The three older roadrunners left the room, escorted by Zadavia. Rip wouldn't be getting any better if everyone kept making his condition worse.

A few hours passed, and the Loonatics - and his parents - all ventured in to visit, asking him just how he'd managed to injure himself that badly. Jokes were passed around, but all merrymaking ended rather abruptly at the sound of an alarm.

"Loonatics!" Zadavia called, presumably from the meeting table, "There's a situation in Acmetropolis! Come quickly!" The superheroes left the room quickly, leaving Rip alone with his parents. Well, for a few seconds, at least; his parents followed Rev out of the room after quickly telling him for the 12th - or was it the 13th? - time that they loved him. At least now things were quiet… sort of. In a matter of minutes, Rip had fallen asleep again, snoring quietly. He could use the rest.

* * *

Well, there's the third chapter. This one was a little trickier for me to write, so hopefully it turned out well. Also, it allows me to delay figuring out what Rip's superpowers should be. XD At least I've got a few villains underway.

Also, it was more than tempting to add Rev's reply to Tech's "eat your words" comment. But I didn't, since my brain didn't feel like making a good comeback.


	4. Chapter 4

Well, here's the fourth chapter; I managed to narrow down Rip's possible abilities, and I decided upon the final direction of the story. X3 Also, I have no idea why Zadavia was in the tower instead of underwater like she usually is. I guess I forgot, is all. Anyway, I'll rectify that and get to some action! XD

Also, I've finally decided on a direction for the story, a direction that sadly will not result in TechRip. Xd Rip was deemed too young and I had better ideas related to TechRev anyway. XD

* * *

"So, what's up, boss lady?" Ace asked as he entered the meeting room. Zadavia stood next to the holo-screen, waiting patiently for the Loonatics to take their seats. Ralph and Harriet stood by to watch, despite the fact that they didn't need to hear the briefing. Disregarding their unnecessary presence, the Frelengian activated the screen, which segmented into several camera feeds of Acmetropolis.

"Acmetropolis is being threatened by a trio of superpowered individuals." Zadavia stated, gesturing to the screens to her left.

"They don't look familiar," Ace pointed out, rubbing his furry chin, "They're from outta town, right?" He had come to that conclusion after Tech's invention had been used. It should have removed the powers of everyone in town. However, Zadavia shot down that idea with a simple shake of her head.

"No, Ace." Zadavia said, focusing the holo-screen on a tall, heavy-set man with patchy stubble, "This man works in a butcher shop that's only a few blocks away. He possesses telekinetic abilities that allow him to literally 'chop' things into pieces. He's already injured a few people and broken into several establishments."

"Lemme guess," Duck snickered, "They call him 'The Butcher,' right? Ha! That's like, the most unimaginative choice of naming ever! I mean… he's… uh…" The glare he received from Zadavia and the others made him quiet down.

"Well, I suppose you are good at guessing," Zadavia sighed, rubbing her forehead, "Yes, they have started calling him 'The Butcher.' Unfortunately, he's not working alone. There are two women working alongside him."

"Lucky guy." Duck muttered, receiving another glare from Zadavia. While it wasn't harsh, she was hoping he'd take the situation more seriously.

"Anyway, both women are also from Acmetropolis." Zadavia said, letting the screen shift to the women, one elderly, one adolescent, "The young woman works in a hobby shock for occultists, and the older woman owns a bakery. Because of their abilities, citizens have been calling them 'The Candlestick Maker' and 'The Baker.'" Duck burst out laughing again, holding his sides as he wheezed in hilarity.

"Give me a break!" Duck laughed, kicking his feet around above him, "Do they get around in a giant bathtub, too? Cripes! What a riot! Supervillains are bizarre." His laughter died away slowly, and Zadavia continued once Duck had finished.

"They travel on foot, Duck, and they are extremely dangerous." Zadavia said, arms folded across her chest, "This Baker woman is capable of encapsulating people in a bubble of energy, which slowly cooks them to death. The young lady is also quite dangerous; she's already given several people serious burns with her pyrokinetic abilities." The room was deathly quiet. Even duck had stopped laughing. Both of the women looked so… harmless. Well, aside from the young woman. She was using her powers much more frequently than her companions, and setting many a scalp aflame.

"Oh-my-goodness-that's-awful!" Harriet exclaimed, "I'm-not-sure-I-want-my-little-Revvie-going-down-there-since-it-looks-so-dangerous-but-I-guess-there-isn't-really-any-other-choice, so-go-show-'em-how-to-behave-themselves, honey!" In the span of her run-on sentence, Ma Runner had rushed to Rev's side and hugged him. However, upon realized how close she was to Tech, she shuffled to Rev's other side, maintaining the hug as she moved. Suppressing a chuckle, Ace pushed his chair away from the table, standing up to address the team.

"She's right, guys… if she said what I think she did." Ace smiled, "Let's jet!" The Loonatics all stood, and, after Rev pried his mother off him, left the tower. Zadavia also turned to leave, her high-heels clicking softly against the tile of the floor.

"Wait-a-minute, miss-Zadavia," Ralph called, causing the blonde to turn around, "Where-are-you-going? You-don't-look-like-you're-a-fightin'-kind-of-gal, what-with-your-fancy-dress-and-shoes." Zadavia gave him a puzzled glance, trying to sort through what he'd just said. However, she managed to figure it out, and a small smile graced her face.

"I'm going back to my own base of operations." Zadavia said, although she wasn't obligated to answer, "I've been up here for far too long; I'm afraid I'm going to get heat stroke. You may remain in the tower to keep an eye on your son until he recovers. Farewell." With that said, the tall woman left the building, vanishing before the roadrunners' eyes. The two aging avians shrugged their shoulders and returned to the medical ward, glad to find Rip was sleeping peacefully.

* * *

Things were not nearly as peaceful in downtown Acmetropolis. Butcher, Baker and Candlestick Maker were quickly clearing the streets of people, most of whom were fortunate enough to flee unscathed. For those less fortunate… let's just say that most of them met a swift end. It wasn't much consolation, considering several people wound up burning. However, the strange trio came to a sudden halt when the Loonatics arrived on the scene, glancing apathetically at the six heroes.

"If you three know what's good for you, you'll stay where you are and let us take you into custody." Ace ordered, taking a triumphant stance above the three criminals. Candlestick Maker was the first to react, fire enveloping her clenched fist. With a pitching arm rivaling Duck's, she threw the flame at Ace's head, although the rabbit evaded it.

"Alright, let's take 'em down!" Ace shouted, "Duck and Slam, you take on the Butcher! Tech, you and Rev go for the Baker! Lexi and I will get that Candlestick girl." His fellow Loonatics nodded, splitting into their assigned groups to apprehend their foes. However, as soon as Ace gave the order, the three foes retreated, fleeing the scene.

"Ha! I guess they were afraid of the ass-kicking I was going to give them." Duck grinned smugly, bringing his thumb to his chest.

"Don't just stand there talking! We've gotta catch them before anyone else gets killed!" Ace commanded, before flying after the pyro with Lexi in tow. The other Loonatics followed suit, chasing after their assignments. Rev and Tech had (presumably) the easiest opponent, so they took their time. After all, how hard would it be to apprehend an old woman? However, they were finding out that it was surprisingly difficult. Someone her age shouldn't have been able to run so fast without breaking something.

* * *

The other Loonatics were having similar difficulties, their quarries also proving difficult to capture. Duck and Slam chased Butcher for quite some time, until the large man finally stopped. They were standing in the middle of a construction site, surrounded by cranes and massive building frames. I-Beams littered the ground, all awaiting use in the enormous building. Lonely machinery sat alone within the site, their hulking figures strangely foreboding.

"So, giving up, are you? Smart move. I'd wipe the floor with ya! I'd kick your keester! I'd…" Duck taunted, although his jeering died away as the large man laughed in a deep, gravelly voice. The waterfowl slowly retreated behind Slam, peeking out as Butcher finished laughing. He raised his cleaver, the large knife reflecting the sunlight into the eyes of his foes. Having temporarily blinded his opponents, he brought the cleaver down, unleashing a wave of psychic destruction. Several deep gouges slashed into the ground, rushing at Duck and Slam with incredible speed.

The bird quickly recovered from the shining light, however, and quacked himself and Slam out of the attack's way. While they remained unharmed, the I-Beams behind them weren't so fortunate. One look at the shrapnel Butcher had created was enough to set Duck's knees shaking.

"Whoa." Slam said, his speech straddling the fine line between understandable and unintelligible.

"We're doomed." Duck moaned, burying his face in his hands.

* * *

Ace and Lexi chased Candlestick a few blocks away from the crime scene as well, eventually finding her waiting for them in the junkyard. She grinned at them, her silvery hair hanging down in her face. Ace activated the Guardian Strike Sword, the blade springing back from its collapsed state. Lexi prepared herself to fight as well, fingers already against her temples. The pale girl brushed some dust off her black straitjacket and skinny jeans. Her appearance certainly explained why she'd gone on a rampage; she looked as though she'd escaped the mental ward and dyed her clothes.

"It doesn't have to go down like this." Lexi said, ready to attack if she needed to, "You could just turn yourself in, and maybe get 10, 15 years in prison." The adolescent said nothing, opting to instead set her fist ablaze. Lexi sighed, taking a more stable position; why did they always insist on doing things the hard way?

Remaining silent, the teen pitched the fireball at the lagomorphs, although she missed both of them. As Ace was about to dish out a witty taunt, he realized that she hadn't been aiming for them at all. The flames descended upon an oil drum, which promptly burst into flame. It seemed the drum hadn't been sealed very well either, for in a matter of seconds, flames encircled Ace and Lexi, roaring high into the sky.

"Is it just me, or was she a lot more prepared than we thought?" Ace quipped, soon standing back to back with Lexi. Candlestick leapt in through the fire, no traces of burns on her clothing. She was smirking at the rabbits, her vacant eyes holding a mocking look.

"Yeah, just a little." Lexi responded, firing a brain blast at the young woman.

* * *

Tech and Rev continued chasing the old woman, not certain of where she was leading them. The speedster had caught up with the woman a few minutes earlier, but after being clotheslined, he opted to pursue from behind like Tech. He was looking rather tired, but minimal exercise couldn't have given him godly stamina. However, he managed to keep the pace, despite wheezing slightly from the effort. Fortunately, they didn't have to continue the chase for long; the Baker had run into a dead-end alleyway, from which there was no escape.

"Oh-boy-Tech-it-looks-like-we've-got-her-now-since-it's-a-dead-end-and-as-far-as-we-know-she-can't-fly-oh-I-hope-she-can't-fly-that'd-be-a-major-pain-in-the-ass." Rev babbled on, although he wasn't silenced by the coyote. His attention had been focused on the woman, who looked ready to fight. Tech pushed a few buttons on his wristguard, revealing a small laser-like device.

"Stand down, ma'am," Tech ordered, "I don't want to scramble your atoms, but I will if I have to." He was bluffing. In all actuality, it was a net gun designed to ensnare super-powered individuals. It was something he'd designed ages ago, but hadn't tested in combat. If the woman insisted on fighting, he might finally get to use it. She certainly wasn't backing down. In fact, she was moving her hands in a peculiar fashion, as if forming a sphere.

Before either male could inquire, Baker thrust her hands out, creating a large orange bubble around the red and green Loonatics. Her palms were connected directly to the bubble, but remained on the outside. Almost immediately, the temperature within their entrapment began to rise, soon becoming uncomfortably warm.

"Oh-man-Tech, this-isn't-good! What-are-we-gonna-do-what-are-we-gonna-do-what-are-we-gonna-do?" Rev whined hopelessly.

"Honestly, Rev… I don't know." Tech groaned, the sweltering heat bearing down on them.

* * *

Well, this went a little longer than I thought it would. Also, I managed to give you all three separate cliffhangers. Xd Man, I'm evil. Sorry about that. I should have the next chapter up by Friday/Saturday, once I've finalized my idea for Rip's abilities; it's a lot harder than it sounds. D:


	5. Chapter 5

Acknowledgment time! I'm gonna take this time to thank anyone who's been reading, and to especially thank those who've been reviewing. X3

Yunno: I'm planning to read your stories ASAP, and I'm glad you seem to be liking mine. I also like how you discretely suggested Rip's ability be technopathy. ;) And yes, I did notice that. Pinkster and Sylth Vester were the only evil anthros I recall seeing in the show, and Sylth wasn't even evil the whole time. Rip doesn't count. XD

CrazyInSye: You were my first reviewer, and you essentially inspired me to keep it going. I hope that you like what's coming next. And I don't think Tech would eat Rev… in that way. XD Sorry, I couldn't resist that innuendo. Now, to the story!

* * *

The world was blank. White walls, white ceiling. It was quite easily the most boring dream Rip had ever had. Nightmare was probably more accurate, however. He was completely alone. Silence overwhelmed him, its presence tense and suffocating. As hard as he tried, he couldn't awaken. He didn't want to be alone anymore. Slowly, however, the room darkened, shadows creeping along the walls until the adolescent roadrunner was left standing in the middle of a black void.

"Don't be afraid." A disembodied voice stated, vaguely familiar but undeniably unsettling. Saying 'don't be scared' never actually kept people from being frightened. In fact, it often had the opposite effect, as it was in this case. Time passed, and eventually an amorphous figure slowly formed, moving toward Rip by some unknown means.

"What are you?" Rip asked the figure, not entirely sure if it would answer him or why he was even talking to it. Dreams were strange, and this one seemed odder than the usual. At least he'd be waking up soon. Hopefully.

"In a way, I'm a part of you now, Rip." The blob stated, indistinct features shifting into what might be conceived as a smile, "You see, that wave of energy did wondrous things to you. You'll see when you wake up, of course. Anyway, it's probably best if you woke up; your friends need you."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Rip asked, left with even more questions, "And how do you know my friends need me?" The figure said nothing, and simply sunk into the ground, the black of the room replaced by the bright, bleached walls.

"You don't need to dwell alone in the dark anymore, Rip," The voice said again, resounding clearly through the room, "Don't be afraid of the light." With those cryptic words, the voice disappeared, leaving the roadrunner alone in the institution-like room. Was he dying? That would be seriously messed up; he'd only just started making a recovery. However a firm shake and the opening of his eyes reinforced the fact that he was very much alive.

"Oh-Rip-, take-a-look-at-this! Your-brother-and-his-friends-and-the-coyote-are-in-trouble-see-it's-on-the-news-right-now!" Ma Runner babbled, gesturing to a portable television that Pa Runner had brought with him. A live newsfeed was onscreen, complete with a pessimistic caption below the video: "The End of the Loonatics?"

"What in the…" Rip had begun to say, only to find words gone at the sight on TV. Rev and Tech were ensnared in an enormous bubble, which according to the anchorwoman was capable of cooking things to death in a matter of minutes. Two new video feeds came up onscreen, one involving Duck and Slam trying to fight against a man with a cleaver, and the other displaying Ace and Lexi fighting a girl in a black straitjacket.

"I've gotta get down there…" Rip mumbled, trying to stand up. Naturally, however, his mother pushed him back into the uncomfortable bed, a worried look on her face.

"Oh-no-you-don't, mister. You're-staying-right-here-because-you-took-quite-a-bump-to-your-noggin-and-you-don't-have-superpowers-like-those-six-do." Harriet said, frowning at her youngest son. She didn't want him to get himself injured even more than he already was. However, her son was just as stubborn as she was. Then, something clicked. Realization dawned on Rip's face, and a small smile grew there as well.

"Actually, I kinda do. I'll be right back, I promise." Rip said, his shadow growing beneath him while he spoke. His mother's eyes went wide, and within seconds, the darkness enveloped her son. Harriet looked exactly as fearful as she felt, but was powerless to stop Rip from vanishing from the medical wing. As quickly as she could, the older roadrunner ran out of the room, screaming for Ralph to help her find Rip.

Moving through the darkness was a very strange feeling. It was like being everywhere, yet nowhere. Fortunately, Rip knew exactly where he was headed; he only worried about actually arriving in time. However, he managed to find his place, springing up from a shadow near a particularly putrid garbage can. He was a few feet behind an elderly woman, one who was slowly cooking his brother and Tech to death. It seemed he'd gone unnoticed, even by those he intended to help. Taking the opportunity, Rip skulked out from behind the garbage, his shadow extending up his bare forearm.

It was all or nothing, now. Rev opened his eyes to slits, and spotted his brother approaching the woman from behind. His expression quickly shifted to a mixture of worry and joy, which looked rather strange. The old woman noted the change in expression, and slowly turned to see what the roadrunner was looking at. Rip's shadow arced from his hand, striking the elderly lady in the head and separating her from the bubble. Oppressive heat shot out from the dome as it shattered, dissipating as quickly as it had been formed.

"That-was-amazing-Rip! When'd-you-get-those-powers-because-I'm-pretty-sure-you-never-had-them-before-now-and-" Rev rambled on, before his brother closed his beak. The adolescent's face held an expression of urgency, which proved to be infectious.

"I'll tell you later; the others are in big trouble. We've gotta go help them!" Rip said nervously, glancing down at the elderly woman he'd knocked out. He'd never attacked anyone while in his proper state of mind; usually, he was rather pacifistic. Now wasn't the time to sit idly by, however. If he could do something, he needed to do it.

"Well, let's go, then," Tech grunted, standing up rather slowly, "Nice work, though, Rip. You'll have to tell us about all that later." The young roadrunner nodded, and he extended a hand to both of the older males.

"This is gonna feel weird, but make sure to hold on tight; I dunno what'll happen if I let go," Rip said quietly, receiving a nod from Rev and Tech. After a short moment, darkness pooled about them, slowly absorbing them into an infinite umbra. They all felt intangible for a moment, before reappearing in a construction site. All the available metal around would prove useful as ammunition for Tech's abilities. Duck and Slam were employing hit and run tactics at the moment; Duck would through a power egg or two, and Slam would throw the largest things available.

"Good going, Rip! Now c'mon, let's save these guys so we can rescue Ace and Lexi." Tech said, trying to lead the two into a good position to fight their enemy. Butcher wasn't making things very easy for Duck or Slam, considering he was batting their attacks out of the sky with every swing of his cleaver. Rip's eyes went wide, evidently new to the 'dangerous villains' aspect of the superhero life. The Loonatics dealt with people like _this_ all the time? He was shivering, but it was mostly due to running around shirtless.

"We're doomed!" Duck wailed, almost running around in circles, "I'm too young and sexy to die, Slam!" He was still focused on the battle, however, judging by the fact that he quacked himself and Slam out of harm's way. Trenches had formed in the ground where the two Loonatics had stood seconds before, resulting in a relieved whistle from the mallard.

It was then that Tech decided to spring into action. A green glow surrounded what appeared to be a destroyed I-Beam, which he carefully levitated into the air. The Butcher didn't seem to be watching, considering he was focused intently on his targets. As quickly as he could, Tech flung the chunks of beam at the man, knocking him to the ground.

At first, Duck seemed alarmed, but his expression shifted once he spotted Tech, Rev and Rip.

"You know, you guys sure showed up late. And why'd you bring the kid? He's still all injured and powerless." Duck pointed out, his arms crossed over his chest. Rip frowned at the duck's comment, but refrained from retorting. He could argue with Danger later. There were still two Loonatics in danger.

"There's-no-time-to-explain!" Rev shouted, gently taking hold of Rip's shoulder, "We've-gotta-save-Ace-and-Lexi, and-I-don't-think-we-have-a-lot-of-time-to-work-with-before-they-get-roasted."

"Alright, alright, fine. So what's the plan, then?" Duck asked, although his wrist was grasped by the adolescent roadrunner, "Hey! Don't touch the merchandise."

"Just trust me," Rip said, giving Duck an irritated look, "And don't let go." He reached out and took Slam by the hand, since he couldn't hope to encircle the tasmanian devil's wrist. Tech and Rev grasped Rip's shoulders, and soon the group had vanished into the shadows.

The quintet reappeared just outside the junkyard, easily spotting the ring of flames that surrounded the two rabbits and their aggressor. Duck looked rather surprised, especially considering Rip's newfound abilities.

"Wow, you're like deus ex machina in bird form." Duck said, "How'd you know where they were?"

"I saw it on TV before I rescued you four," Rip said, rolling his eyes as though it was something that should've been obvious, "Now let's go, before they get crispy fried." The others nodded, and quickly advanced upon the ring of flames. Ideas were forming in Tech's head, and soon he'd thought up a rescue plan.

"Alright, I've got a plan," Tech stated, trying to assemble the five anthros together, "Duck and Rip, you two teleport into that ring of fire and take Lexi and Ace out with you. Rev, you and Slam move as fast as you can in a circle around the flames. It should make a vortex, thus putting out the fire and leaving that firestarter powerless." The others nodded, serious expressions on all their faces. Duck even refrained from making any snide comments; he didn't want to become the leader just because Ace died. He quickly quacked into the center of the action, Rip appearing through Ace's shadow.

"C'mon, we've gotta get out of here." Rip said, grabbing Ace's wrist and sinking back into the shade. Duck took Lexi by the hand and quacked out of the circle, leaving a very displeased looking young woman alone in the center of the fire. With everyone else out safely, Rev and Slam began moving as fast as the could around the outside. In mere moments, the fire began to die away, leaving only ashes and an unconscious teen behind.

"Nice work, guys," Ace smiled, "A few minutes later and we'd have be charcoal. C'mon, let's take her and her friends down to the police station for questioning. Once we're done that, we can try to figure out how Rip got his powers." The others nodded, Slam gently picking up the unconscious young woman. With that done, they slowly made their way back to find the girl's cohorts. It was going to be a busy day.

* * *

Yeah, I gave Rip umbrakinesis. It was the only thing I thought was fitting enough. Also, I'm not sure what inspired that dream sequence at the beginning, but I like it. A little precursor to his abilities and junk. Anyway, hope you enjoyed it. :)

Also, I spotted a few continuity errors and other annoying things (like missing percent signs), so I fixed everything up. This may or may not be a ploy to get you to read through it again. XD


	6. Chapter 6

I has another update! I was so stoked to write it. X3 A special thank you to all my readers for sticking around to check it out. (: Also, I'm not very good at writing accents, so just imagine Ace saying it in your head like I do. Same goes for Slam. XD

* * *

The police office was drafty, Rip noticed. He only noticed because he was still shirtless, a fact which left him rather self-conscious. Maybe he could slip back into the tower and get his jacket, at the very least. However, he remembered Ace's words after retrieving Baker: "Stick with us for a little while; we've still gotta talk to you." Sighing, he crossed his arms over his bony chest and approached the others, who were currently questioning the adolescent girl. She was cute; he'd give her that. Of course, he couldn't exactly give her anything else, considering she'd burned several people to death and almost done the same to Ace and Lexi.

"Look, I'm telling you that it wasn't my fault!" The girl shouted, looking rather distraught, "I wasn't doing it on purpose! It was like someone was controlling my body or something!" Rip perked up at that comment, eyeing the girl curiously. Something about her disposition told him that she wasn't lying. Entering the interrogation room, he stood next to Ace, who was currently questioning the teenage girl.

"Rip, you might wanna leave the room; she's a dangerous criminal, after all," Ace pointed out.

"Ace, can I talk with you for a second? She's not gonna do anything in those." Rip pointed at the insulated glove-cuffs that the girl was wearing. After a brief moment of thought, the rabbit consented, leaving the room with the young roadrunner.

"So, what's on your mind, kiddo?" Ace asked, crossing his arms as Rip had.

"Well, I heard what she was saying about feeling like she was being manipulated…" Rip mumbled, his hands sinking into his pants pockets, "I believe her. I know what it's like when something takes over and leaves you with the mess." Ace gave the roadrunner a sympathetic look, patting the young man on the shoulder.

"Look, Rip, you should try not to get emotionally involved in a case like this," Ace said, looking the teen in the eye, "I'll ask her a few questions about being mind-controlled, but I can't guarantee that I'll believe her. Now go sit down; you need your rest, kiddo." Rip disliked being treated like a kid, but he did as he was told. He returned to the room on the other side of the two-way mirror, taking a seat near the left wall. The Loonatics remained crowded about the window, waiting for answers. They needed something to report so that the case could be closed.

Ace returned to question the girl, taking a seat across the table from her. She looked up at him through her silver hair, her mascara having run a few inches down her face in his absence. His expression softened, although the others wouldn't have seen it; his back was to them.

"Alright, I'm curious about your story. What were you doing before you went on your rampage?" Ace asked, receiving another glare from the pale young lady.

"Like I said, I didn't go on a rampage; someone used me to go on a rampage for them." Candlestick grumbled, crossing her arms over her chest.

"Alright, fine. What were you doing before someone used you to go on a rampage for them?" Ace grinned, clearly not taking her story seriously. Just because Rip believed her didn't mean that he did.

"Well, I was taking my shift at 'Penta Graham's', the occult store a few blocks from here." The teen recounted, hands placed in front of her on the table, "I was showing a few of my friends this cool superpower I got the other day after that weird shockwave, and-"

"Shockwave?" Ace asked, cutting off the girl's story, "You mean that shockwave gave you powers?" The girl nodded fervently, her guillotine earring jingling quietly as she did so. Ace looked over his shoulder at the two-way mirror, hoping to transfix Tech in his gaze. The coyote squirmed uncomfortably, his stomach leaping up into his throat. Was this all because of the Impact Reversal Ray? He cast a sidelong glance at Rip, who wasn't really paying attention to the interrogation. Had his ray gun bestowed superpowers instead of removing them?

The coyote had a bad feeling that those three and Rip weren't the only ones who'd been granted powers. He had some research to do when they returned to the tower.

"So, as I was saying," Candlestick continued, drawing Ace's attention back to her, "I was showing off my power for my friends. They thought it was cool, and all that junk. Then this dude walks into the shop all mysterious-like. He's wearing this high-collared coat, black gloves and this cool fedora, right. I can't see his face very well, but I know he's carrying one of the spell books we sell. He asks me if he can return it, and I ask him for his receipt. Then, he looks me in the eye, and his eyes do this weird flashy voodoo sort of thing. I didn't think much of it until I realized I wasn't in control of my body anymore. It was like watching someone else play a FPS; I could see what I was doing, but someone else was in control."

Ace's curiosity peaked, the rabbit rubbing his chin thoughtfully. If that was really the case with the pyro, then the other two in their trio must've met a similar guy.

"That's all I need to hear, for now. We're gonna keep you here for a little while, until we question the others you were in cahoots with." Ace said, standing up, "Guys, take her into custody and bring out the old lady." The teen sighed softly, seeming resigned to her punishment. She didn't struggle as she was escorted to the holding area, merely shuffling along behind the officers.

* * *

The Loonatics were now holding a press conference at city hall, the Mayor seated in her usual spot. They had important news to give the city, especially regarding its safety. Tech squirmed in his seat, considering he'd been appointed to speak to the public. Even though all of this was his fault, he didn't really see the need to give the speech himself. Ace could easily have done so and blamed him. However, this was probably the fairest way to punish him, considering how badly he'd messed up.

The Mayor said something, but the coyote hadn't been listening. Rev gently pushed the scientist, who quickly rose to his feet and shuffled over to the podium. He cast a pleading look back at the other Loonatics, although only Rev showed sympathy. That didn't mean the roadrunner would take his place, however. Tech knew his friend better than that. Sighing, he stood behind the podium, looking up at the citizens of Acmetropolis.

"As you all know by now, a wave of cosmic energy cascaded through the city yesterday afternoon, causing several minor injuries and a few power outages." Tech began, sounding much more confident than he felt, "This 'shockwave,' if you will, has also affected the city in other ways. If the incident earlier today involving three new superpowered individuals wasn't enough of a sign, I'll say it now. That wave of energy has bestowed superhuman abilities to certain citizens of Acmetropolis."

The room was filled with murmurs and whispers, citizens speaking with their neighbors. Tech waited patiently for them to quiet down, although the Mayor's gavel was a much more effective silencing tool.

"Unfortunately," Tech continued, his ears drooping somewhat, "That was not what the wave's intended effect was. I developed a ray gun to depower the supervillains residing in Acmetropolis so that you could all rest safely."

"So this is all your fault, then!" An outspoken man shouted, standing up from his seat, "Because of you, loads of people are in the hospital, and innocent people got killed by superpowered freaks!" The hall was in uproar, insults and complaints shouted vehemently at the coyote. Tech's ears fell flat against his head, and he accepted the verbal abuse, the guilt returning once more. Another few bangs of the Mayor's gavel, as well as several angry shouts, silenced the room, leaving the dejected scientist to his thoughts.

"I apologize for the trouble I caused." Tech said clearly, despite looking down at his feet, "However, I do have something else that you all need to be aware of." The coyote looked up, conviction in his eyes. Even if the citizens were mad at him, he still had information that they needed to hear.

"There is a dangerous man on the loose with hypnotic capabilities." Tech stated, the faint buzzing about the room becoming deathly quiet, "Those three individuals who robbed and attacked the city were under this man's control. He has not been located yet, but we are on the lookout. The individuals he manipulated all described him as wearing a black, high-collared coat, black gloves, a fedora and dark jeans. Be sure not to make eye contact should you encounter an individual that matches this description. All accounts made have stated that his abilities take hold through eye contact, and he can maintain control until his connection is lost."

"Did they give you any facial characteristics to look out for, Tech?" The Mayor asked, worry evident in her voice.

"All we were told is that he had 'doll eyes,' as if he weren't really alive." Tech explained, "If you see an individual matching this description, make sure you send word to the authorities as soon as possible." He knew that Zadavia would contact them if the city was in danger, but she wouldn't be able to monitor suspicious individuals. Well, as far as he knew. With his message delivered, the scientist returned to his teammates, who all stood to leave. They had matters to attend to back at headquarters.

* * *

Ralph and Harriet were waiting for the Loonatics back at the tower, apparently having finished scolding Rip. When they'd brought him home an hour or so ago, they'd had quite a few things to say to the youngster. The Loonatics all joined them at the meeting table seconds before a hologram of Zadavia appeared at its center.

"Good job on apprehending those individuals, Loonatics. And it seems we owe special thanks to you, Rip, for helping to ensure that they succeeded." Zadavia said, her hair flowing in that mysterious way it did when she wasn't there in person, "As a matter of fact, I would like to make an offer to you, young man." The adolescent raised his head, now clad in his usual jacket and blue t-shirt. Zadavia wanted to give him something?

"Um… sure. What's the offer?" Rip asked. His parents frowned at their son; he wasn't allowed to accept any offers at this point. They'd just grounded him for the next week for leaving the tower without telling them where they were going, and ignoring the order to remain in bed.

"The offer," Zadavia began, a small smile forming on her face, "Is to join the Loonatics as a seventh member." Everyone around the table looked shocked, aside from Rev and Rip's parents. In their case, they both looked distraught.

"But-he-can't-just-go-off-and-become-a-superhero!" Ralph shouted, "He's-still-got-schoolwork-to-do, and-if-he-goes, who's-going-to-take-over-the-family-business? Who?" Rip rolled his eyes at his father's display, finding it to be just a little more than melodramatic.

"Besides, miss-Zadavia, he's-grounded-right-now-for-leaving-the-tower-without-permission-to-go-save-the-Loonatics, and-even-though-I'm-glad-he-did, he-still-didn't-have-permission-to-leave." The blonde took that into consideration, crossing her arms as she thought. After a moment, she decided to make an offer.

"Mr. and Mrs. Runner, I believe that your son will be a great asset to the Loonatics. In regards to his schooling, we will make a request that his teachers send their lesson plans to Tech, who will assume all duties as his teacher." Zadavia stated, ignoring the look the coyote gave her, "Does this sound fair? Rip could benefit greatly from education from Tech." The roadrunners conversed for a moment in hushed tones, rapid-fire speech passing between the two. After a minute or so, the two nodded their heads, before turning back to face Zadavia.

"We've-decided-that-Rip-can-stay, so-long-as-someone-else-is-in-the-room-while-the-coyote-is-teaching-him, in-case-the-coyote-gets-hungry." Harriet said, "And-his-curfew-is-10-o'clock-because-he-can-be-a-little-sour-puss-when-he-doesn't-get-enough-sleep." Rip looked thoroughly embarrassed by that comment, and quickly hid his face in his hands.

"I have a name, you know." Tech grumbled, although he was thinking more of his newly appointed duty. Zadavia could have at least asked him if he was willing to teach Rip. He may have been a genius, but that didn't mean he would make a good teacher. Ma and Pa Runner didn't seem to pay any attention to Tech's comment, and instead opted to say their good-byes. After giving handshakes to the other Loonatics, save Tech, and hugs to their children, the two roadrunners left the tower, although they were lacking the usual spring in their step. They were going to miss their son.

"Please show Rip around the tower, so that he may be familiarized with it." Zadavia stated once the teen's parents had left, "Rev, for now, you shall be sharing a room with your brother until his own room is prepared. Tomorrow, you will all come down to my headquarters, where Rip will receive his supersuit and an access card. Zadavia, out." With those two words, the blonde alien vanished, leaving the Loonatics with their newly appointed member.

"Well, I guess we should show him around. Nose game!" Ace shouted, touching his nose quickly. Rev was second, followed by Slam, Tech and Lexi. Duck hadn't caught on quickly enough, and he was left to show the newcomer around.

"Oh, you're all despicable. Well, I suppose I could always take the boy under my wing, show him how to pick up the ladies and whatnot…" Duck grinned, about to stand when Lexi beat him to the punch.

"I'll show him around. We already have one Duck… can't imagine what'd I'd do if there were two of him." Lexi frowned, making her way around to the other side of the table. Rip stood and followed the pink rabbit, who proceeded to give him a guided tour of their living quarters. It would certainly be more detailed than the last tour he'd taken, since now she was obligated to show him their training simulator and other such things.

"Like putty in my hands." Duck chuckled, placing his feet on the table and his arms behind his head.

* * *

Well, there you have it. This chapter contained much more dialogue than I'd have preferred, but it needed to be that way. Hope you guys enjoyed it. (:


	7. Chapter 7

Can you believe that this chapter gave me writer's block? I can. XD Anyway, now it's done. I've taken long enough to write this... ON WITH THE FIC!

* * *

The tower seemed a lot larger during the second tour than it had during the first. Rip only then realized just how much of the tower normal guests didn't get to see. In fact, seeing it felt strangely exhilarating. It was like being told an incredible secret, one that must be kept between select individuals. He found his interest focused almost solely on the training room, however. Inwardly, he wondered just how realistic the simulation was, and what the room was capable of producing. In short, he was geeking out.

All of the other rooms in the tower seemed like fodder. None of them really interested him, although knowing where all of the bathrooms were was a bonus. At least he'd know where to go should his bladder threaten to burst. The tour took around a half-hour, ending at about 8:47. That left him with… an hour and 13 minutes before his brother tried to obey their parents' wishes. Rip had no desire to go to bed at 10:00, attitude be damned. If their parents really knew him, they'd know that he'd never been a morning person.

Their tour had ended with the game room, where everyone seemed to have gathered in the duo's absence. Ace was playing pool with Slam, or at least was attempting to. It seemed that the tasmanian devil had accidentally broken the cue ball, a feat which he was still babbling an apology over. Duck was playing pinball in the corner, buttons clacking with furious speed. His score was relatively low, so Rip assumed that the mallard had only just begun. It was either that or assume that Duck was bad at pinball; either was plausible. Tech and Rev were standing at a shooter game, each armed with their own imitation blaster.

"Get that one on the left, Rev!" Tech shouted, pulling the trigger on the blue plastic gun while he fired at the screen, "We're almost out!" Rip slowly gravitated toward the two, reading the game's title on the side of the arcade game. "Necropoly" was written in a font that looked as though it were bleeding, allowing the roadrunner to guess what the game was about. Sure enough, when he moved behind the Loonatics, they were in an ornate mansion filled with several blood-soaked zombies.

"That one looks a bit like the Monopoly guy." Rip pointed out, although the stout, monocle-wearing zombie was soon pumped full of virtual lead, "Erm… well, he used to, I guess." Rev and Tech were tearing through hordes of reanimated corpses, blowing them apart with professional precision. They must have played the game quite a few times, considering they seemed to know exactly where the zombies were going to pop out.

"A-few-thousand-more-points-and-we'll-set-a-new-high-score! Maybe-we'll-even-beat-it-this-time!" Rev said excitedly, firing the gun away from the screen so that he could reload. It was one of those rail-style games, where all you needed to do was aim and shoot quickly enough to stay alive; the game did all the moving for you. Kill totals and point scores went up, steadily rising with every maggot-infested corpse returned to eternal slumber.

A small break came up in the game, wherein their unseen characters finally backed out of the room and blocked off the door. Tech and Rev took a deep breath as one, holding their light guns at the ready while the scene shifted. As the characters backed up, the in-game creaking steadily grew louder, until a startlingly loud crash announced breaking of the floor beneath them. Unfortunately, the floors continued to break, until the game's protagonists had fallen into a subterranean cavern. However, they miraculously survived, considering the floor broke their fall. That and it was a video game, where logic and physics need not apply.

"I hate it when you guys get to that part," Duck said from across the room, pulling the firing mechanism on the pinball machine, "I always lose my groove."

"It'd help if you actually had a groove to start with, Duck." Ace quipped, grinning at the mallard before taking his next shot in pool. Rev and Tech ignored both comments, aiming back at the screen. It was time for the final boss.

"Ooh-I'm-so-excited-for-the-final-boss-do-you-think-we'll-be-able-to-defeat-the-boss-this-time-because-you-remember-how-tough-it-is-to-kill." Rev said, managing to say everything without stopping for breath.

"Well, hopefully," Tech responded, watching as the virtual ground started to quiver, "I mean, you can only lose to the same thing so many times." The roadrunner nodded, his younger brother watching intently. Even if he wasn't playing, watching them play through the game was relatively entertaining. Besides, there was no pressure on him to succeed. However, Tech and Rev were aiming for a new high score, which they'd never get unless they defeated the boss.

And what a boss it was.

The ground within the game slowly split, and out from the ground emerged an enormous maggot with large, claw-like legs. It was covered in several blood-red growths that rippled as it slithered across the tunnel. A horrid shriek escaped the creature's ghastly lips, rows of needle-like teeth quivering at the sound. For an arcade game, it had some incredibly realistic graphics. Rev and Tech both started firing at the beast, small bursts of fire colliding with the creature's face.

Things seemed rather familiar to Rip, as if he'd seen this game before. One of his friends was a master of light gun shooting games, and he always made a spectacle when he played. Had he seen how this game ended? He knew instinctively that this was the last fight; the boss was too crazy not to be. Then, it clicked. The real target in this fight wasn't the boss itself, but the wooden support beams in the tunnel.

"Tech! Shoot the beams supporting the ceiling!" Rip shouted, receiving a startled look from the coyote, "Just trust me; a friend of mine beat it before. Rev, you've gotta shoot those red boil thingies." The two older males looked at each other briefly, before following the young roadrunner's advice. True to the teen's word, the creature was slowly being repelled by Rev's firing, and copious amounts of dust issued from the ceiling where Tech was firing. After what felt like ages of weapons fire and reloading, the creature cried out in pain, bashing itself hard against the wall of the cavern.

The power of the impact caused the ceiling to crumble down upon the maggot-like monster, crushing it in a torrent of stone. To their surprise, the rest of the house they had been in fell upon it as well, ridding them of any other zombies they'd missed. After a few minutes of simply watching the destruction, a message in gold text appeared on screen.

"CONGRATULATIONS! YOU'VE BEATEN THE GAME!" The game announced in a surprisingly loud voice. Duck jumped in surprise from the corner, losing yet another game of pinball. Almost as suddenly, two large spurts of confetti erupted from the arcade game, fluttering down around Rev and Tech.

"HIGH SCORE!" The game shouted again, "ENTER INITIALS!" It was certainly bossy. Tech aimed at the screen, quickly entering in a T for his own name. Rev fired the second space until it changed into an R, leaving the third initial undecided.

"Maybe we should have put an ampersand in between them." Tech shrugged, rubbing his chin with the barrel of the plastic gun.

"Why-don't-we-put-in-another-R-for-Rip? After-all, we-probably-would've-lost-without-his-advice-and-I-guess-it's-the-least-we-can-do, right?" Rev asked, not really noticing how pleased his brother looked. Tech didn't notice either, but he consented, firing in Rip's initial as well. With the high score entered, the credits began to role, starting - oddly enough - with the voice actors. It seemed strange, considering there was very little dialogue… well, unless you counted moaning zombies and screaming monsters.

"We set a new high score on Necropoly! This calls for a celebration." Tech smiled, watching as the others slowly approached the arcade game. After seeing the score, they proceeded to congratulate their friends, although Duck's complement was backhanded.

"Does anyone wanna go get some drinks or somethin'? It ain't a celebration without snacks." Ace noted.

"Oh! I want a tequila with lemon zest and one of those little umbrellas." Duck piped up, receiving stares from all the others in the room. None of them were sure if he was being serious or making fun of Ace; with Duck, it really could have been anything.

"I'll do it." Rip spoke up, breaking the silence, "I may as well do something, right?" The others seemed to agree, giving the adolescent orders for drinks and snacks as if he was a waiter. Slam's order was the most difficult to understand, which was unfortunate considering the amount of food he was demanding. Rip attempted to make note of everything that had been asked, and proceeded to melt away into his shadow.

Above them, they could hear Rip open the refrigerator, and generally try to maneuver around the kitchen. Fortunately, nothing sounded like it was being destroyed, although he did seem to be having some trouble. Eventually, he returned to the room with his arms full of food. His right hand was barely keeping hold of a glass of what looked like apple juice.

"Here Slam." Rip wheezed, his skinny legs shaking from the stress of carrying all of Slam's food. The tasmanian devil was happy nonetheless, and proceeded to eat all the food right out of Rip's arms. It was probably the scariest thing the teenager had ever experienced in his life. At least he still had his arms. With all the food devoured, Slam took the glass of juice in a surprisingly gentle fashion, and lumbered off to the nearest chair to sit down. A relieved sigh left the adolescent, and he went back to the kitchen to fulfill everyone else's requests.

Several trips later, Rip had successfully provided each Loonatic with their snacks and beverages. The only one who still needed to be sated was Rip himself. Without further ado, he headed back upstairs, slipping through his shadow for convenience. It was easy enough to find the soda, and he found a bag of squashed birdseed muffins on the counter. His mother must've been bringing them when their car crashed. Shrugging, he took one of the flattened muffins anyway, and left the kitchen. He decided to actually walk this time, because there wasn't any rush to bring things back. Besides, they didn't need to wait for him to return to celebrate.

As he headed toward the game room, he managed to pick up faint echoes of the others talking. It wasn't the raucous celebration he'd been expecting, but then again, it was only a video game. He continued to walk, but stopped in his tracks when he heard his name. Quietly as he could, he sidled up next to the door, listening to the conversation the other Loonatics were having with one another.

"I just don't trust him." Ace said, his arms crossed over his chest.

"But-why-not? In-case-you-forgot-he-saved-all-our-lives-this-afternoon-and-I-dunno-about-you-but-I'm-glad-that-I'm-not-roasted-right-now." Rev argued for his brother, agitation evident in his speedy speech.

"Look, I know what he did today, and I'm thankful that he did it," Ace began, "But I just don't trust him. He wasn't being mind controlled when he broke into Tech's lab and stole that parasite. What's stopping him from doing something like that again?"

Rip felt crushed. He had felt that he didn't really belong, but he had no idea that the others thought of him as untrustworthy. It had only taken one foolish mistake half a year ago in order to break their trust. Repressing the urge to sigh, the teen entered the room, opening his can of soda and taking a sip. Even if they'd been talking about him behind his back, he would still try to enjoy himself. After all, he now planned to leave in the morning, and he may as well enjoy his last few hours in the tower, even if the others didn't like him.

* * *

The party was relatively short, as only Rev and Tech felt like celebrating. After about an hour, everyone left for their rooms, except for Rip. He'd left about 40 minutes before everyone else had, presumably to set up his stuff while he stayed with Rev. However, when Rev returned to his room, he found his brother trying to pack his suitcase. The teen wasn't doing a very good job, considering he still hadn't managed to close his luggage.

"Rip, what-are-you-doing? Well, I-know-what-you're-doing, but-why-are-you-doing-it? You-only-just-got-here-and-I-agree-with-Zadavia-that-you'd-be-a-huge-help-to-the-team." Rev said with concern. The teenager sighed, standing up to face his brother.

"Rev… do the others hate me?" Rip asked, his body language thoroughly conveying how dejected he felt.

"Why-would-you-think-that? I-always-thought-the-others-liked-you, especially-since-you-saved-their-butts-earlier-and-" Rev began, before his brother reached out and snapped his beak shut.

"Don't give me that crap, Rev. I heard what they were saying." Rip sighed, only sadness evident in his voice, "I'm just gonna go home. You guys don't need me anyway." With that said, he tried to close his suitcase again, and again, he failed. Rev was unsure of what to do. He'd never seen Rip this upset about something before; usually his brother stormed about and yelled a lot. Seeing him go about things quietly with a defeated attitude felt wrong. The older roadrunner walked over and patted his brother on the shoulder, gently turning his sibling toward him.

"Don't worry about what they said." Rev smiled, speaking at normal speed to ensure that his message got across, "You can't let something like that get you down; you've just gotta prove them wrong. That's a lot more satisfying than moping around, isn't it?" Rip pondered that for a moment, rubbing the tip of his beak with his index finger.

"Y'know, I had no idea you were such a good motivational speaker, Rev." Rip grinned, crossing his arms over his chest, "You're right. I can show them that I'd be good for the team. Thanks, Rev." He stood there awkwardly for a moment, before giving his brother a loose hug. The teen let go almost as soon as he embraced his brother, looking embarrassed.

"You tell anyone about that, and I'll maim you." Rip said, trying to look surly. His eyes gave away his feelings, however, and he was definitely glad.

"C'mon, it's-time-for-bed-and-I-know-mom's-not-gonna-be-happy-when-she-finds-out-you-stayed-up-past-your-bedtime." Rev smiled, gently punching his brother in the arm. Rip returned the gesture, sharing a smile with his brother. After a small brotherly scuffle, the two set about unpacking Rip's things, and making the teen's bed again. Neither of them wanted to share a bed.

* * *

There we are! Chapter 7 is complete! And I'm quite glad it is; it took way more time for me to write than it should have. That arcade scene also felt a little too long for me, but that's just me. Anyway, hope you enjoyed it. :)


	8. Chapter 8

Sorry this took me so long; I've been pretty busy - not to mention sick - recently. I hope that this chapter makes up for it. Also, this is a random note and all, but I officially have at least one reader on every continent except Antarctica! WOO! On with the fic!

* * *

Dawn fell over Acmetropolis, tendrils of sunlight snaking into people's bedrooms and falling upon slumbering eyes. There were only two reactions to the bright light: either the curtains were drawn shut and the awakened individual returned to bed, or the citizens got up and went about their business. Rip fell under the former category, but was unable to close the blinds. The window just happened to be positioned in such a way that the light fell right in his eyes, effectively ending what had been a pleasant sleep. Now that he was awake, there was no turning back. Groaning, he rubbed his eyes and rummaged through his luggage, looking for clothes to wear. A loud snore from Rev briefly distracted him, but he eventually managed to pick out his clothes for the day. With that done, the scrawny teen left the room, closing the door behind him.

Rev shot up when the door shut, a startled look on his face. He looked around his room, before realizing that the sound must have been made as Rip left. Stretching, the lanky male got out of bed, popping his spinal cord into proper alignment. Immediately after that was done, he made his bed, tucking the sheets about until it looked immaculate. A quick glance over at his brother's bed told him that the same attention to detail hadn't been given. Sighing, he quickly made his brother's bed as well, leaving it perfectly presentable. With that done, he found himself tidying his room, just to make sure everything was in its proper place. The roadrunner could only be called thorough; his room was now spotless. If it were a cartoon, it might have sparkled.

All that was left to do was clean up under his bed, and then he could start his day. After all, he couldn't leave his room without making sure it was entirely spotless. He'd already started cleaning it, and he always finished what he started. Carefully, he squeezed beneath his mattress, crawling below the box frame. There were a few indefinite blobs laying about, which he knew instinctively must have been down there since the last time he'd cleaned his room. So what if it had been four days since he'd last cleaned; they could still gather up dust under the bed. Quickly crawling over to the small, fluffy masses, he tossed them out from under his bed, and soon emerged covered in a thin layer of dust.

Rev was slightly surprised by what he'd found lurking in the depths below his mattress; merchandise. Loonatics paraphernalia of all sorts - mostly stuffed dolls - were now in a surprisingly neat pile at his feet, the occasional dust bunny marring their simplistic, fluffy forms. He carefully picked up each doll, brushing away the dust and setting them carefully on his bed. If he had time, he'd wash them when they returned to the tower. They still needed to take Rip to meet Zadavia in person, after all. The roadrunner was almost finished, although he stopped when he came to the last doll.

It was a Tech stuffy.

He looked around his room for a moment, before quickly locking the door and sitting down on his bed. The doll was worse for wear, looking years older than the others were. It wasn't, but it certainly appeared to be. Rev softly squeezed the doll, a small smile forming on his face as it squeaked loudly. Another quick glance around the room later, and the roadrunner was hugging the doll tightly to his chest, rubbing his cheek against the coyote's. Soon after, he sneezed loudly, wiping his mouth; he'd squeezed a large cloud of dust from the doll, and it had irritated his nostrils.

"I-really-ought-to-give-these-things-a-good-wash-when-we-get-back… oh! That-reminds-me, I-need-to-take-a-shower-and-get-ready-to-go-meet-Zadavia-I-wonder-if-anyone-else-is-awake-I-guess-I'll-find-out-later." Rev smiled, putting the doll back on his bed with the others. However, after a moment of thought, he relocated all the stuffed animals into his closet, shut the door and retrieved his uniform. If Rip returned and saw them on his bed, he would surely be blackmailed. A sigh left his beak as he tucked his uniform under his arm, his thoughts straying to the coyote whose dusty likeness he'd just crushed. Now that he had been assigned the task of educating Rip, they probably wouldn't be able to visit as frequently. After all, they were busy enough without extra jobs during their free time; Tech would have even less time to do things.

They'd never top their high score at this rate. Rev shrugged, deciding he'd speak with Tech later; it was early, considering the sun had only fully risen above the horizon moments ago. The coyote had a tendency to sleep in, mostly because he was often working late in his lab. He made his way to the living quarters bathroom, although he found it occupied. In hindsight, he probably should have checked using his GPS powers. Perhaps it would have been abuse of his powers, but it would at least save him some time. Shrugging, he closed his eyes and focused for a moment, checking out the tower with his abilities. As he'd expected, Ace was in the training room, Tech was in his lab, and everyone else was sleeping. That left Rip, who had obviously claimed the bathroom he now stood before.

He sped about the tower, making way for the stairs simply because they were much faster than the elevator. Well, in his case, at least. It didn't help that he couldn't stand waiting in the lift; it just felt… inefficient. In a matter of seconds, the roadrunner stood before one of the lower floors' bathrooms, opening the door and locking it behind him. Rev knew that no one would be barging in on him, considering there were plenty of bathrooms above the one he stood in; it was just a natural reaction. In all honesty, he couldn't think of anyone who didn't lock the bathroom door before going about their business. Shrugging at his inner monologue, he disrobed and placed his pajamas on the counter, not too far from a clean pair of underwear and his supersuit.

With his clothes set out, he hopped into the shower, closing the large glass door behind him. Turning on the water was the part he dreaded most; it always started off freezing, especially if someone else was already using the shower. Taking a deep breath and holding it, he turned the tap to full blast heat, gasping at the frigid initial stream of water. After a few moments, the water heated up, and he quickly adjusted the temperature to avoid scalding himself. Now that the water was of agreeable warmth, he grabbed a bottle of feather wash, specially designed for avians such as himself. Opening the bottle, he poured a copious amount of the viscous liquid into his palm, before forming it into a lather and applying it to his comb.

About 10 minutes of scrubbing later, and Rev emerged from the shower, squeaky clean. He quickly retrieved a towel, drying himself off before quickly wrapping it around his waste. It was unnecessary, since he was planning to get dressed immediately, but it was habitual. The roadrunner quickly retrieved his boxers, briefly abandoning his towel in order to pull on his undergarments. Now somewhat clothed, he took a quick look at his reflection, his gangly form staring back. For whatever reason, he tried striking a pose, flexing his muscles in a macho fashion and growling fiercely. It made him laugh, since he didn't possess an intimidating figure and only had as much muscle as was necessary to move. After he'd finished goofing around, he slipped into the uniform, the spandex-like suit fitting around him in its mysterious fashion.

"Maybe-someday-I'll-figure-out-just-how-the-suits-do-that." Rev said to himself, unlocking the door and leaving the bathroom. Inwardly, he wondered what time it was; the later it was, the less angry Tech could be if he woke him. In any case, he made his way back up the stairs, making a beeline for Tech's laboratory. As he expected, the coyote was fast asleep at his worktable, the Impact Reversal Ray laying in pieces before him. The coyote looked so peaceful as he slept, his thumb stuck in his mouth. Suppressing a laugh, Rev walked over to his friend, gently shaking the green furred genius.

"The cake is a lie!" Tech shouted, shooting straight up and falling backward in his chair. He rolled heels over head a few times before colliding with a toolbox, the resulting clang resonating through the lab. Rev was at Tech's side immediately, helping to ease the coyote back onto his feet.

"I'm-so-sorry-Tech-I-didn't-mean-to-startle-you-but-I-guess-I-did-so-yeah, -I'm-sorry." Rev apologized, trying to help the coyote stand properly. It didn't help that Tech was barely conscious, but he was at least able to stand.

"So, what did you want, Rev?" Tech asked, yawning softly, "It must've been important if you had to wake… me… up…" He slowly came to the realization that he'd fallen a sleep, and groaned in frustration. That could only mean that he'd been up late working on the Impact Reversal Ray. Rev looked sympathetically over at his friend, leaning against the genius' untidy workbench.

"I-dunno, I-guess-I-just-wanted-to-hang-out-with-you-for-a-little-while-since-you're-going-to-be-busy-tutoring-Rip-now-and-we-won't-have-much-time-to-do-stuff-together." Rev explained, watching as Tech rubbed his chin thoughtfully.

"Y'know… I actually do have some things I'd like to try out…" Tech began, looking at Rev with a coy grin on his face, "Wanna help?" Rev just smiled back, in an equally coy fashion.

* * *

Ace, Lexi, Duck, Slam and Rip were sitting in the kitchen, attending to their own breakfasts. The two rabbits were speaking to one another, and Duck was complaining that Slam had taken his breakfast. It seemed to be standard procedure; no one was doing anything about Duck's predicament. Rip just shrugged and continued eating his breakfast, again munching on the squashed muffins his mother had brought with them. Normally he would've gone for something else, but Slam had already eaten anything that looked remotely good stored within the refrigerator. So, the young roadrunner made due with his muffin and a glass of orange juice, waiting patiently until they could go to Zadavia's personal base.

He noticed that neither Rev nor Tech was present at the table, which seemed peculiar to him. Well, in Rev's case, at least; his brother was usually the first one awake at home. However, the other Loonatics didn't seem to notice, or were used to the red and green superheroes missing breakfast. Rip shrugged, and finished his simple breakfast, eager to just get everything over with. The sooner he was a Loonatic, the sooner he could earn their respect, and more importantly, their trust.

"Well, I guess we should get going. Rip, would you mind getting Tech and your brother? They're probably working on something in the lab." Ace suggested as he stood up from the table. Rip nodded curtly, standing up and walking away from the table, hands jammed into his coat's pockets. He hoped that Ace would dismiss it as usually teenage moodiness, which in a sense, it was. However, he was still quite sore that the rabbit had the audacity to say things like that, and to his brother, no less. If he had a problem with him, he should've spoken to him about it face to face. The idea made Rip all the more determined to prove the rabbit wrong; he would be an asset to the team, and he knew it.

"Harder!" Came a loud moan, as Rip drew closer to Tech's lab. The young roadrunner froze in his tracks, his mind going a mile a minute. What the hell was going on in the lab? It sounded like Tech was moaning, and not in a painful manner. He almost didn't want to open the door, worried that he might find something that would mentally scar him for eternity. However, he needed to get Tech and Rev, and he figured that mental scars would be worth the blackmail opportunity. Taking a deep breath to calm himself, Rip slid the door open, expecting to find the coyote engaged in some lewd act.

Instead, what he found was Tech and Rev, sitting in separate massage chairs. He felt a strange mix of relief and confusion, not certain of which emotion to lean toward. Neither of the older males noticed Rip immediately, until he cleared his throat. Tech opened his eyes and turned off the chairs, much to the red roadrunner's disappointment.

"Um… we're gonna go meet Zadavia now… sorry for interrupting your… whatever that was." Rip stammered, looking somewhat embarrassed. Tech just shrugged, wheeling the chairs back into the closet.

"Well, we can't exactly keep her waiting." Tech shrugged, closing the closet on the massage chairs, "Thanks for getting us, Rip. Anyway… let's jet." The coyote grinned as he said Ace's catchphrase, as if he'd wanted to say it for a long time. Rev just rolled his eyes, grinning at the coyote as the two left the lab. Rip just stood there for a moment, not quite sure of what had just happened. There he was, having expected to find Tech and Rev doing… well, anything other than using massage chairs. They couldn't blame him for assuming that, could they? After all, what does one usually assume after hearing someone moan "harder" in a pleasurable fashion?

"Rip-you-should-probably-get-a-move-on-if-we-don't-wanna-be-late-after-all-the-sooner-we-get-there-the-sooner-you-can-join-the-team." Rev said, snapping Rip out of his thoughts. The younger roadrunner just nodded, following his brother back to the main room. Everyone else was waiting there, standing next to a curious looking device. It was essentially an enormous glowing circle, casting dim shadows about the room from where it was. Normally, he would've asked, but he figured that he'd find out in a matter of seconds.

"Alright everyone, get on the tele-pad." Tech announced, directing everyone onto the circular device, "It's probably the fastest way to get to Zadavia's, and it's probably the safest way to get Rip there, since he doesn't know how to use the amphibious jetpack suits." Rip raised an eyebrow at that comment, but followed everyone onto the tele-pad nonetheless. Tech stood at a keypad for a moment, entering coordinates into the teleporter. Shortly after, he pressed the Enter key and rushed back onto the device. Moments later, the dim light the circle emitted grew brighter, until the seven disappeared from the tower in a flash of light.

* * *

Well, there's chapter 8. I thought it would be too long if I included the scenario in Zadavia's underwater home, so I'll put that into chapter 9. Sorry this took me so long, everyone. Xd At least it's almost done; if I'm pacing it right, it should end with chapter 12… don't quote me on that, though. I can't guarantee that it'll end at that time.


	9. Chapter 9

I can honestly say I didn't expect my story to get that many hits, let alone over 1000. If I get 8000 more hits, I'll be obligated to make that corny "IT'S OVER NINE THOUSAND" joke. XD You guys deserve the greatest thanks a writer can give; without an audience, an author is nothing. Anyway, on with the fic!

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The seven superheroes materialized in Zadavia's aquatic home, schools of fish – and the occasional cetacean – swimming past the windows. Rip gasped in amazement, although he looked embarrassed when the others turned to look at him. Perhaps the grandiose nature of an underwater base was lessened when one was familiar with it. The alien woman who led the Loonatics soon appeared, walking into the room from some unknown depths of the building. She was clad in her usual violet attire, hair slicked back by some means that had yet to be revealed.

"Good morning, Loonatics, Rip." Zadavia said, "I'm glad you're all on time. This assessment must occur as quickly as possible, lest we leave Acmetropolis open to attack from its enemies."

"Assessment? I thought I was already a part of the team," Rip protested, although a quick gesture from the blonde silenced him for the moment.

"I could not simply allow you to join the Loonatics without making sure that you were capable of the job," Zadavia stated calmly, standing serenely before the team of anthropomorphs, "Simply saving the Loonatics on one occasion will not suffice. As such, you will be tested to judge your combat ability and tactical prowess." The young roadrunner looked around at the others, but they all seemed to agree with their leader. Rev looked sympathetic, but didn't oppose the test either. It was for the best.

"Alright, fine, I'll do your test. Let's get the simulation crap over with so we can get back to the surface." Rip grumbled, crossing his arms over his chest.

"Actually, Rip, I had a different test in mind," Zadavia said, causing a wave of intrigue to spread amongst the superheroes, "I myself do not actually possess a combat simulator. As such, I plan to test your combat against actual superpowered individuals."

"What do you mean, Zadavia?" Ace piped up, confusion evident on his furry, yellow face, "Where are you going to find people with superpowers to test Rip? We can't exactly go about busting perps out of jail just to make sure the kid can do something on the battlefield." Rip was obviously angered by the rabbit's 'kid' comment, but Zadavia's response stopped him dead in his tracks.

"Of course not, Ace; that would be irresponsible," Zadavia said, her voice eerily calm, "That's why the six of you are going to test Rip yourselves."

* * *

Rip couldn't believe what had just happened. He'd been thrust into a large, domed area with the Loonatics, and had been sealed in by thick, steel doors. The others had initially protested, but Zadavia assured them that she would stop the test if anyone was in danger of being seriously harmed. That wasn't exactly comforting to the teen, but he figured that if the Loonatics could trust her, then he could. If only the others would do the same in return. His green eyes scanned the room, looking for anything that could be used to his advantage. However, it was entirely empty, occupied solely by the seven superheroes. Bright lights shone down around the room, casting long shadows across the floor and walls. Taking note of that, Rip waited for Zadavia to announce the test's beginning.

Soon enough, her voice came in through the intercom system, announcing "Commence the test" in an authoritative manner. The Loonatics were on him like white on rice. He barely managed to defend himself in time, his shadow splashing up with liquid speed to block a kick from his brother. However, he took an egg to the back, one which, fortunately enough, only contained a copious amount of orange juice. Being drenched in a citrus beverage was preferable to being engulfed in flames, although he didn't have much time to dwell on that thought. Ace and Lexi were on him in a flash, the duo attacking with a flurry of limbs. Rip decided to retaliate this time, partially out of anger toward the leader of the Loonatics. His shadow arced around him fluidly, striking the lagomorphs and knocking them off their feet.

If they weren't trying to pummel him, he probably would have felt bad; conflict was one of his least favourite things. However, in this case, he was just going to have to accept that a few people were going to have to get injured. As Slam's spinning form collided with him, he knew for certain that he wasn't exempt from being harmed. The gangly teen was knocked into the steel wall, a loud clang echoing about the sterile room. He was winded, but he didn't have time to sit around and recover properly. Tech was preparing a device of some sort, a projectile weapon judging from its design. Rip wasn't given much time to think about what the coyote was preparing, as his brother ran up behind him and restrained his arms.

Rip tried desperately to escape his brother's hold, but he wasn't able to wrench himself free. He attempted to swipe at the older roadrunner with his shadow, but Rev managed to slide easily out of the way, his brother's attempts useless. Tech finally finished preparing his weapon, and aimed the device at Rip, who looked pleadingly back at the coyote. The genius gave a sympathetic look, and fired the weapon. It was the gluco-gel gun that he'd developed before they ran into the Ringmaster and Otto the Odd. However, the young roadrunner had suddenly gotten an idea moments before Tech fired. Acting as quickly as possible, he slipped into his own shadow, the gluco-gel slicking his comb backward as he slipped away. His brother had been hit by the gel instead, trapped in a gelatinous prison.

The teenage roadrunner emerged through Tech's shadow, knocking the gun out of the coyote's hands. He scrambled to catch the gun, managing to ensnare the genius with the device by sheer luck. Mumbling a quick apology, he tossed the device onto the ground, watching it skitter away into the corner. Rip didn't have time to make sure that they couldn't escape; he still had to deal with the other Loonatics. After all, he couldn't exactly show Ace how useful he could be if he couldn't join their team, right? Slam pounded him with another spinning body slam, knocking him into the wall again. His jacket squeaked as he slid down to the floor, pain searing throughout his body.

Groaning, the teen moved his shadow about himself, creating a protective bubble while he attempted to steady himself. Slam bashed into it a few times, although he didn't manage to break through. Ace, Duck and Lexi all hit him with projectiles, but his temporary shield held true for the moment. In an attempt to force them away, he lashed out with his shadow, tendrils of liquid darkness streaking toward the other anthropomorphs. Ace and Lexi both took the hits, but Duck managed to quack out of harm's way. The mallard reappeared behind Rip, hitting him hard with an exploding egg. Pain surged through the gangly teen's body as he flew forward a few feet, skidding across the ground. If he kept taking hits like he was, there was no way he'd last. Stubbornly, he stood up, his shadow slithering quickly about his body, enveloping him in its immaterial form.

Both avians looked somewhat surprised, but Rip acted faster that the water fowl. His shadow stretched from his body, striking the mallard hard with a fist-shaped tendril. Duck cried out in surprise, flying across the room and skidding into the wall after he hit the floor. The roadrunner winced slightly, but decided he could apologize later; there were still three Loonatics that hadn't been put out of commission. Ace had quickly closed in, landing a solid flying kick in the small of Rip's back. A cry of surprise, intermingled with anguish, left the teen as he spun forward, his lanky form going airborne from the kick's strength. Slam caught him, but quickly tossed him to the ground, barely giving the bird time to recover from the blow he'd taken.

Groaning in pain, Rip once again struggled to his feet, glaring stubbornly at the others. They looked surprised, but returned to their fighting stances; if Rip wasn't going to give up, they couldn't either. There were only two possible outcomes: the teen would pass the test, or he'd go down trying. Ace smiled at that thought, finding common ground in their willpower. He could respect that the roadrunner wasn't going to give up. This wasn't just an assessment to join the Loonatics to the bird; it was his way of proving himself. _Well, then, kiddo, let's see what else you've got,_ Ace thought, his smile growing slightly. At this point, he wanted to see Rip succeed, but he wouldn't make it easy. Just because the kid had spunk didn't mean he was going to let him win.

Lexi was the first to make a move, firing a brain blast at the feathery adolescent. Rip took the hit, taking air for a few moments before hitting the ground again. His theory had proven incorrect; he couldn't redirect the rabbit's energy attack back at her through his shadow. If it had worked, it would have been advantageous, but he couldn't expect everything to work out magically. He rose to his feet again, his shadow slipping back to its usual place on the floor. The teen looked exhausted, and was panting heavily from either stress or pain. Either was plausible, but neither was completely evident. As Slam approached to put Rip out of commission, the teen turned to face the Tasmanian Devil, his shadow rising like a wave and crashing headlong into the purple heavyweight. The large marsupial was down for the count, groaning incomprehensibly as he lay on the steel floor.

Lexi and Ace moved in for another tag team attack, one rabbit swinging while the other moved to get a better attacking position. Rip tried to block all the attacks, but he wasn't always able to move his shadow quickly enough to take the blows for him. Eventually, he had to resort to the bubble again, bruises blossoming beneath his feathers from the repeated beating. The two lagomorphs attempted another joint attack, this time succeeding in rattling the protective sphere. The roadrunner was starting to get worried, but he knew that if he panicked, he wouldn't pass the stupid assessment. Grumbling, he forced himself to calm down, reinforcing his shield while he tried to time their strikes. After about a minute of repeated blows, he finally got their rhythm, and decided to move back onto the offensive.

Hoping he'd timed it right, the teen's shadow exploded outward, knocking both rabbits away from him. Lexi hit her head hard on the floor, while Ace landed on the still dazed Slam. The female rabbit was out cold and Slam was now groaning loudly, but the leader of the Loonatics was still ready to fight. It was one on one now. Rip felt much more confident, knowing that he'd subdued five of the six Loonatics. If he ever turned on them, he could give them a run for their money. However, after going through all this trouble to prove himself, he didn't plan to blow it all by double-crossing them. His opponent acted first, the lagomorph setting into another flying kick.

Rip decided to try sending Ace through a shadow portal, but he only succeeded in blocking the attack. It seemed that only he could go through his shadow unless he was touching the other person or object. That was a useful discovery, although it was inopportune. The rabbit hit him with an uppercut, the likes of which one might see in an action movie. He was knocked off his feet, landing hard on his back, tail feathers splayed out behind him. Perhaps he should just give up; five out of six was a pretty good record, in his books. However, a larger part of him was screaming at him to stand up and kick Ace's ass. That part of him won out, and he staggered to his feet, his entire body shaking.

"C'mon, kiddo, you've done enough," Ace said, the concern evident in his voice surprising the teen enough not to care about being called 'kiddo,' "You've already shown us that you can handle yourself in combat, even after that car accident. There's no shame in quitting after all that."

"Of course not, since I'm not quitting," Rip replied stubbornly, trying to stop his body from shaking, "I'm going pass this assessment, and prove you wrong."

"Prove me wrong about what?" Ace asked, apparently confused by Rip's comment.

"I heard you telling the others that you didn't trust me last night," Rip said angrily, reacting the way Rev usually expected him to, "But I'm going to earn that trust, and your respect. So don't just stand there blathering on about me being injured; either you finish this assessment or I do." The rabbit smiled at this, and said nothing more. There wasn't anything that needed to be said. They were going to settle things, and one of them was going to be down for the count. Once again, Ace reacted first, firing a blast of energy from his eyes at the younger male. Rip moved out of the way quickly, watching as the lasers collided with a small panel on the wall opposite of the rabbit. A loud explosion resounded through the steel-enclosed dome, and the lights flicked off immediately.

At first, Rip believed he had the upper hand, given the fact his abilities allowed him to manipulate the darkness. However, he found that he couldn't manipulate the umbra of the room, as he was unable to block a well-aimed punch that the rabbit delivered. He also realized too late that he couldn't see in the dark, a limit that Ace didn't seem to have. As much as he respected Tech, it was moments like these that he disliked the coyote; the two of them weren't on an equal playing field. He attempted to blindly dodge the rabbit's blows, but he was unsuccessful. Soon enough, he was on the ground, groaning in pain. He attempted to stand up again, but Ace simply pushed him over.

While he lay on the ground, Rip remembered Tech's gluco-gel gun. They'd already receded into that corner area; he'd brushed against one of the gelatinous cubes on his way down to the floor. Scrambling as quickly as he could, he rushed toward the corner, his hand stretching out to reach for the weapon. Ace was in hot pursuit, already prepared to let loose one last flying kick on the roadrunner. The gun was in the teen's hand, and he quickly rolled onto his back, aiming it directly above him. Praying to some higher power that he succeeded, he fired the weapon, listening to the sound of the gooey gel flying through the air.

* * *

Rip awoke in the medical wing in the tower, all the others huddled around him with worried expressions on their faces. Rev hugged the younger male tightly when he realized he'd awakened, speaking so quickly that even he couldn't understand. He gently pushed his brother off him, groaning in pain from the effort the action required. His entire body ached; even his socks hurt. However, that didn't stop him from sitting up, despite the protests the others and his own body gave him.

"Did I pass?" Rip rasped, his throat feeling uncomfortably dry. Rev grinned slyly, pulling a black spandex suit off of a nearby tray. A light blue triangle was emblazoned on the chest, and Rip knew instinctively that it was his. Despite himself, he felt tears welling up in his eyes, incredible joy enveloping him. Wiping his eyes hastily, he took the uniform – _his_ uniform – and hugged it to his chest, barely managing to keep himself from giggling giddily. It was official. He was a Loonatic.

* * *

Well, hope you enjoyed that chapter. It was actually a great release of tension for me after this crazy time. XD I think I've finally gotten out of my slump. :D Stay tuned; the fic isn't far from being finished. ;3


	10. Chapter 10

Dude! I can't believe how close I am to having 1337 hits. I can honestly say that I'd be happy if that was all the hits I ever got, but I am kind of hoping to get over 9000, for obvious internet jokes. Not that it'll happen. XD Anyway, here's the chapter; ENJOY IT! XD

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Alarms sounded as the glass shattered, shards from the broken window cascading over the once pristine bank floor. A young man stood among the wreckage, bare feet treading over the glass without care. He was stoic in his resolve, moving swiftly toward the vault. No matter how strong the lock was, it would only be a minor inconvenience. Striding casually toward the enormous safe, he placed his palms flat against it, eyes closed in focus. If anyone had been at the bank – which was doubtful given the late hour – they might have observed the skittering of the shards of glass, or the heavy rumbling that echoed through the bank. However, it all stopped with a simple click, the door to the vault swinging open soundlessly. Immediately the lights went on, security cameras training themselves on the teenage boy.

He failed to notice, and proceeded to pilfer the vault, thrusting copious amounts of money into a knapsack he'd brought with him. Once he was satisfied, he left the large safe, clearly expecting to make a clean getaway. However, seven anthropomorphic citizens of Acmetropolis stood in his way. Their leader took a step forward, his ever-present sword in hand.

"Isn't it past your bedtime, kiddo?" Ace grinned, watching as the teen took an aggressive stance, "I guess we'll have to tuck you in, then." He ignored the scoffs from two of his fellow teammates, knowing full well that it had been Rip and Duck. They were the only ones who made fun of his heroic catchphrases, or at least were the only ones who made fun of them in front of him. In any case, the teen quickly shifted into a crouching position, placing his palms face down on the cold stone floor. Almost immediately, the building began to rumble, sonic vibrations pulsating through the floor. The force of the tremor made it difficult to stand, but it was harder to avoid the debris that was shaking loose from the ceiling.

"I guess he doesn't wanna play nice," Ace noted, activating the Guardian Strike Sword, "Well, let's show him what we're made of!" The rabbit cut through a chunk of falling plaster, preventing himself from being flattened for the time being. Cracks were forming in the support pillars, and it seemed that Tech was the first to notice. However, he was much more shocked when he understood the situation.

"Guys, he's trying to bring the building down on all of us! We've gotta get out of here!" Tech shouted, looking hurriedly toward the exit. Rip was the first to react, reaching out to touch Lexi and Slam, quickly pulling the two of them through his shadow and into the dimly lit streets outside of the bank. Duck naturally quacked himself 

outside, while Ace, Rev and Tech quickly ran out through the window. However, even when they'd gone outside, the tremor still continued, the building quivering and crumbling from the stress.

"Oh-my-goodness, he's-not-even-trying-to-stop! I-think-he's-going-to-bring-the-building-down-on-himself! I've-gotta-do-something; be-right-back!" Rev shouted, running as fast as he could back into the crumbling building. Tech shouted something, but his words were lost to the sound of the bank collapsing. He howled his friend's name, and was about to run to the rubble when Rev replied with a simple "yes?" The Loonatics looked at Rev, evidently surprised at how quickly he'd gotten in and out of the falling building; there were still scorch marks on the pavement from his faster-than-usual rush to the rescue. In any case, he gently put the teen down on the pavement. However, the seven of them groaned in unison, realizing they'd just followed another red herring. It was obvious that the teenager was another victim of the mysterious, doll-eyed man. He was clad in a band t-shirt and a pair of pyjama pants, and his bare feet were bloodied by the broken glass.

"I can't believe it," Tech grumbled in disbelief, rubbing his forehead, "Whoever this guy is, he's got serious issues. I mean, he was willing to sacrifice an innocent kid in order to kill us!" The others seemed to agree, nodding uncertainly. This young man marked the fifth victim of the doll-eyed man in the last 2 months, not counting the Butcher, Baker and Candlestick Maker incident. It seemed that the strange criminal's only goal was to kill the Loonatics; after all of the places his victims had attacked, he could have easily become quite wealthy. A yawn from the youngest member brought Tech out of his reverie, the current time coming back to him instantly.

"Rev and I will take this guy to the hospital; you five should all get back to the tower and rest," Tech volunteered, picking up the unconscious teen despite the obvious fact that he wasn't fully capable of sustaining the weight. The others just shrugged tiredly and activated their jetpacks, flying back to their headquarters. Rev offered to help carry the teen, but Tech pointed out that Rev needed his arms free to fly. Thus, the two friends flew in silence toward the hospital, traveling at a slower speed than they usually did. They'd already caught the criminal; there was no need to rush. Despite the ungodly hour – 3:16 AM, to be precise –, the two seemed wide awake; or at the very least, they were capable of remaining conscious. They might have noticed that the smog had cleared enough to see the stars if they hadn't been so focused on their goals. It was a beautiful night.

The coyote eventually had to land on a nearby rooftop, laying the teen down so he could rest. He wasn't exactly gifted with physical prowess; there was no way he could carry the boy all the way to the hospital without stopping to rest. After a minute or so, Rev joined him; he would have been there instantly, but had flown on ahead without his friend. They sat on the rooftop together for a few minutes, the silence between them permeated only by the sound of passing vehicles and aircraft. For some, the silence may have been uncomfortable, but between the two friends, a little quiet was nothing. Tech welcomed the stillness; sometimes Rev spoke too much for his liking. Perhaps to spite that thought, Rev piped up again, eyes skyward.

"Hey-Tech, have-you-ever-seen-the-stars-shine-this-brightly-before," Rev asked, pointing up at a break in the smog and clouds, "I've-gone-to-the-observatory-before-but-it's-never-been-this-pretty-before." The roadrunner cast a 

fleeting glance at the coyote after making his comment, looking back at the sky when his friend looked at him. A small grin formed on Tech's face, but he said nothing for a moment. After another minute of silence, the coyote raised his own hand up, index finger outstretched toward the sky.

"That's Cassiopeia," Tech stated, making eye contact with his friend before looking back at the cluster of stars, "I don't think I've ever really had the chance to see her constellation without a telescope before. They do look quite lovely tonight... well, technically, this morning, I suppose." He chuckled in geeky fashion, his laughter united with Rev's moments later. The roadrunner's laugh didn't sound quite as silly, but it did sound somewhat... awkward. Tech, fortunately, didn't seem to notice, deciding to lean back and drink in the night sky. After a few moments, Rev followed suit, his feathery hand brushing up against Tech's for a moment. Noticing what had occurred, the roadrunner withdrew his hand, sitting up straight as he had been earlier.

Tech was about to ask Rev what was wrong, but a loud groan from the unconscious teen prevented him from doing so. He'd have to ask his friend about it some other time. Carefully, he picked up the teen again, activated his jetpack and flew toward the hospital. Rev was flying beside him the whole time, keeping an eye on the coyote should his strength waver again. However, every time the genius looked at him, the roadrunner looked away embarrassedly. The coyote couldn't quite figure it out; why would Rev be embarrassed by something that had occurred accidentally? Mentally shrugging, the coyote decided not to give it much thought; sometimes Rev did strange things. Twelve minutes later, the two anthropomorphs arrived at the hospital, where Tech gratefully handed off the teen to a few nurses with a stretcher. Another five minutes were spent explaining the situation, and once that was finished, the two heroes returned to the tower, heading back to their respective rooms to sleep.

Normally, Tech would have gone to his lab, but he wasn't focused on his work at the moment. For some reason, Rev's actions on the roof remained foremost in his mind. He may not have been a psychologist, but he knew his friend well enough to find the behaviour odd. What could have gotten his friend so flustered over a mere brushing of hands? Perhaps it was just the chance that his action could have been interpreted as an attempt to hold hands. When the genius thought about it, he realized that he would probably have been embarrassed too. They were best friends, after all; it would've have been awkward. That was probably the best explanation, considering how eager the roadrunner was to return home. Satisfied with his analysis, the coyote rolled over onto his side, closing his eyes as he attempted to drift off to sleep. At first, he found it difficult, but once he began thinking of his lab, he soon coasted off into slumber, dreaming of the inventions he and Rev could make together.

* * *

The Loonatics arrived at the hospital at around 10:30 AM, passing by the waiting room on their way to visit the teen they'd apprehended earlier that morning. Rip walked casually behind the others, wearing his usual street clothing rather than his uniform; to be honest, he found its spandex confines to be rather... confining. In any case, they arrived in the adolescent's room, filing in and closing the door behind them. Ace stood at the foot of the injured boy's bed, Lexi and Duck by his side. Slam took a seat next to Rip, since neither of them got involved with 

interrogations. Although Slam's reason was simply a language barrier, Rip had been deemed "not experienced enough" to ask these victims simple questions. Since when did someone have to be experienced to ask someone something? He grumbled quietly at that thought, folding his arms across his bony chest. Rev and Tech were seated at the other side of the small room, both apparently in deep thought. It wasn't an unfamiliar sight to the teenaged roadrunner; the two were together quite frequently, and they were either conversing or hypothesizing.

"Alright," Ace began after a short moment of silence, resting his hands on the bed's metal footrest, "Do you remember anything that happened before you robbed the bank?"

"I robbed a bank," The teen asked in response, eyes wide with surprise, "But... when? I went to bed at midnight."

"You don't need to play dumb; we know that some weird guy in black was making ya do it." Ace explained, although the teen continued to give him a doe-eyed stare, "I mean... you don't seem like the type of guy who'd bring down a bank just to kill us." Clearly, the lagomorph wasn't good at settling one's nerves, since the young man looked even more nervous. Rip rolled his eyes at the rabbit's behaviour, not exactly impressed. It was quite obvious that he was inexperienced when it came to dealing with teenagers. However, the teen's expression seemed to shift slightly, changing to a look of recognition.

"I... I remember now," He said, rotating his lip piercing as he spoke, "I woke up because a gust of wind blew into my room through my window. I was pretty sure that I'd closed it, but I guess that it was that guy you were talking about. Anyway, when I turned around, he was looking right at me. Then, his eyes did some weird... flashing thing, kinda like a camera. But... I can't remember anything after that. It's weird; it's like I know what happened after, but I can't remember... you know that feeling, right?" The rabbit nodded, thanking the teen for his time. If that was all the information that could be obtained, then there was no use in asking further questions. With their interrogation – if one could call it that – finished, the superheroes left the hospital, flying back toward the tower.

Rip rolled the teen's words around in his head, mulling over what he'd said. He was the first victim who couldn't remember any of what had happened after meeting their hypnotic foe. As he thought, he recalled the other stories; the first victims – The butcher, baker and "candlestick maker" – could remember nearly every detail vividly, save for a few patches. Every victim after those three seemed to have larger chunks of their memories regarding those incidents missing. That could easily be explained as mere progression – the doll-eyed man was getting better and better at wiping memories as he moved from victim to victim. In itself, that was problematic: as he got better, any clues to his whereabouts, appearance or identity would cease to exist. This was quickly becoming a bad situation.

When they returned to the tower, the young roadrunner continued to ponder the dilemma, trying to think of a possible solution. Tech or Rev could probably think of something better, but he wanted to finally be of use to the 

team. You see, ever since being formally "accepted" onto the team, Rip hadn't been able to do much on the field. According to Ace, he was "in-training," and as such needed to hang back and observe, lest he get in the way. It made him angry; he'd proven his capability in battle before. Hell, he'd even managed to defeat the Loonatics single-handedly; of course, he'd passed out and required medical attention, but a victory was a victory. He mentally shook himself, retraining his focus on the case at hand. How could they –_he_ – find a solution to the problem? That was when an idea came to him; they'd need to question the doll-eyed man's first victims again. It seemed so simple. If they remembered the most about the incidents, surely they'd be able to remember the most about the man causing the trouble.

However, when Rip expressed this idea, he was summarily shot down. Ace explained that they'd already asked the initial victims and had learned all they could from them. There was no point in bothering them anymore. Naturally, this led to a heated argument, which ended in Rip's idea being summarily rejected. According to the leader, Tech was going to do a crime scene analysis of the teen's room, in hopes of finding the doll-eyed man's fingerprints. Indeed, it was a better course of action, but the rabbit could've simply said so without cutting down his idea. Frustrated, the adolescent stormed back into his room – or, more accurately, his and Rev's room – and slammed the door shut.

He seated himself sulkily on his bed, muttering immature and inappropriate things about Ace, tossing in obscenities where they were due. After about a half-hour of his private rant, he sighed, realizing just how immature he was acting. Sulking and complaining wouldn't get anything done. The rabbit was right, anyway; they couldn't bother those people again when they'd given all of their information. It would just be insensitive. Rip only wished that his idea had been responded to in a "good effort" way, rather than a "no, that's stupid" way. Trying to keep a level head, he forced his thoughts elsewhere, choosing to direct his attention at the floor. There, he noticed that something had fallen on the floor; it had probably happened when he slammed the door. Standing up, he approached the fallen object, realizing that it was a stuffed animal as he drew closer.

A grin formed on his face as he picked it up, realizing it would give him something to poke fun at his brother over; Rev already knew copious amounts of embarrassing facts about him. It had taken him months to live down the moulting story his brother had "accidentally" told at his birthday party three years ago. In any case, he inspected the doll further, noting a green triangle emblazoned on its chest. _So, it's a Tech doll,_ Rip thought, smiling amusedly, _I guess he must have one for all of the Loonatics._ He gently squeezed the doll, snickering softly when it made a loud squeaking noise. However, in that moment, he experienced something strange.

The environment seemed to shift around him, fading into a monochromatic portrayal of the brothers' bedroom. A black and white version of his brother now sat on his bed, looking down at the doll with a smile and squeaking it. Moments later, after looking around, he gave it a hug, only to burst of coughing due to an enormous cloud of dust. Rip watched as the scene unfolded, flabbergasted by what was occurring. Then, almost as suddenly as it had happened, it ended, returning the teenage roadrunner to the colourful world he usually inhabited. He threw the doll back onto Rev's bed, genuinely afraid of what had just happened. What on earth was that? It was like a flashback in a cartoon, except he was just there, watching the scene unfold.

Suddenly, a little light flicked on in his head. Perhaps that was another ability that had been triggered by Tech's invention? If it was, then maybe he could go to one of the crime scenes to gather information. Hell, if he could do that, maybe he could even get a positive visual ID on the man who was going around hypnotizing people. Changing back into his normal clothes, the roadrunner prepared to go into town. There really was no point in questioning the man's initial victims; he could just find some way to experience another flashback where they were first hypnotized. However, he reasoned that he'd need an item to stimulate the look into the past. After all, he'd never witnessed anything like that before he picked up Rev's doll. So, if his reasoning was correct, he'd need to find something the doll-eyed man had touched. In an instant, he knew exactly where he needed to go; Penta Graham's, the occult store.

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Well, there it is! Chapter 10, in its entirety. Sorry if it took a little longer than usual; university's keeping me busy. Hope you enjoyed the chapter! Also, feel free to let me know if I messed up on any details; I'll edit them as necessary. Also, I hope none of the fluff was lame or too forward. I don't want my fic to seem too assuming of their relationship, even if it's a TechxRev story. Anyway, thanks for reading!


	11. Chapter 11

I love how the story manages to keep garnering interest. Knowing that people are reading your work is truly a wonderful feeling. X3 Anyway, I suppose I should say that the story did indeed pass 1337 hits, so I'd like to say HOORAY for that. :D Chapter 11 begins now!

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Rip meandered casually down the street, keeping his eyes peeled for the shop he was searching for. For some reason, he felt more like walking than simply teleporting through his shadow. Perhaps it was a subconscious desire to get exercise, or because he simply felt like taking his time. After all, if his hunch was incorrect, he could at least enjoy the crisp autumn breeze. The day was drawing to a close, ensnaring Acmetropolis in twilight as the sun went down. He disliked the shortened days of autumn and winter, but the days were certainly lovely. Fallen leaves blew across the pavement, the gentle breeze tousling his comb of feathers. His train of thought was abruptly interrupted by another teenager, a rowdy rapscallion who happened to bump into the young roadrunner.

"Watch where you're going, bro," The teen grumbled dramatically, making odd gesticulations with his hands before swaggering away from the disoriented adolescent. Rip blinked in surprise for a few moments at the teen's behaviour, more than tempted to start an argument and teach the other male who he was messing with. However, he decided not to, and all for one simple reason. It seemed that without his uniform, people didn't seem to recognize him. Despite the fact that he didn't use an alias, people didn't seem to be recognizing him on the street. In a way, it was a relief; he'd seen the legions of citizens who worshipped and adored the other Loonatics. He'd never liked clamour and hordes of admirers. The only things he needed were his family and the people he cared about.

Well, and the information he was searching for. Perhaps if he found an important lead, the others would allow him to participate more actively in missions. He'd only been allowed to take civilians to safety, and even that job was superfluous; civilians had no trouble taking themselves to safety. Sighing, he continued on his little journey, refusing to ask for directions. After all, none of the people he'd seen looked like they dabbled in witchcraft and other similar interests. Of course, he could never know for certain, but it would certainly make it easier if he spotted someone carrying a few aptly labelled bags. However, after a few more blocks of walking, he found the building he was looking for.

Penta Graham's was a small building, which made sense considering its location downtown. It reminded him of a shack, possessing a run-down quality that may or may not have been intentional. The sign seemed like it was made of wood, or a substance with a similar appearance, while the lettering was down in dark red, argon lights. A classic, flip "Open/Closed" sign hung on the door, and he could see a slight bell that would jingle to announce his presence. Taking a calming breath, the roadrunner pushed the door open, the bell overhead clanging loudly to announce his presence. He noted that the inside of the shop was equally dismal, not to mention dimly lit and cluttered with peculiar objects.

The lighting was supplied mostly by glowing orbs, plasma balls, candelabras and the occasional, out-of-place lava lamp. There were numerous bookshelves around the store, including a few located solely behind the counter, where only the clerks had access. Tables upon tables were full of other wares, such as charms, faux shrunken heads, animal bones, and wax figures. His entry had roused the clerk, who seemed to have been asleep at her post before his arrival. Her hair was cut at uneven lengths, yet it all seemed to blend together despite the vast differences in length. She had dyed her hair silver, it seemed, and only her left ear was pierced – the earring appeared to be a miniature dancing skeleton.

"Welcome to Penta Graham's, your number one source for the supernatural, both evil and benign," The clerk announced dully, her nametag reading "Griselda," "What can I help you with, sir?" Her entire greeting was given without even a glance at Rip, as she seemed to have turned her attention to a musty book on the main desk. Rip just shrugged, approaching the counter and leaning upon it. She finally took a look at him, surprise taking hold of both of their faces. The two had met previously, specifically on the day that Rip had acquired his powers. He had been hoping that she'd be working that day, but hadn't honestly expected it. Griselda's look of surprise quickly shifted into a scowl, her arms crossing beneath her chest.

"What do you want," She asked, sounding rather irritated with the other adolescent, "I've already told you guys everything about what happened. The guy came in, said some stuff, and then my body was taken over. Isn't that enough information for you? Or maybe you just like hassling victims until they confess to something they didn't do. Is that it? You came here to make me confess? Well, I'm not going to admit to something I never did, so you can just get the fuck out of here if you don't have anything better to do." The roadrunner looked rather shocked, but he understood where she was coming from. He decided he'd best make his intentions clear, since she obviously didn't seem like she wanted to talk about the incident.

"Look, that's not what I'm here for," Rip stated, ignoring the girl's masterful sarcastic eyebrow raising, "I just wanted to know if you had the book that guy brought in. Y'know, when he took over your body and stuff." Griselda's features softened immediately, her face taking on a thoughtful expression. After a moment, she nodded and proceeded to leave the counter, heading into a well-hidden back room that the teen hadn't spotted upon entering the building. A few minutes passed, and the young woman returned, gingerly holding a rough, leather-bound novel in her hands. When she passed the book to Rip, he took a brief glance at its title, which simply said _"Astral Projection: a How-to Guide."_

"Here it is, I guess. Shouldn't you be wearing gloves if you're going to look for fingerprints or something," Griselda asked, handing the book to Rip. He simply shook his head, claiming that he'd "explain in a second." The roadrunner held the book for a few minutes, flipping through pages and trying to repeat the mysterious incident that had occurred in his brother's room. Rip even retraced the path the doll-eyed man would have followed while carrying the book, and he still didn't experience the strange flashback-like shift of scenery. Sighing, he handed the book back to the other teenager, shaking his head sadly.

"I don't understand. I thought I might've been able to have a flashback about what happened when he hypnotized you," Rip explained, looking disappointed, "That way, we could have had a more definite idea of who we were after, or some more definite proof as to his identity." As he spoke, he made his way over to the memorabilia, deciding that he could at least look through the items for sale. Perhaps he would stop feeling like he'd wasted his time by coming to the shop, and wasted Griselda's time by having her retrieve the tome. However, as he was feeling around the charms, he heard the entry bell jangle for a second time. He and Griselda both turned as one to look at the person who'd just entered, finding a well-dressed man clad entirely in black.

"Pleasant day," The man stated, his voice sounding hollow and far away, "It's a pleasure to see you again, Griselda." His face seemed twisted into a permanent grin, his skin glossy and shiny in the candlelight. Rip looked over at the clerk, whose face was contorted in horror. She immediately conjured up a fireball and threw it at the man, who merely opened the door and let it sail past him and into the street. The man then looked up, looking at the teens with the same, unfaltering grin. Suddenly, the young roadrunner realized who they were dealing with; the Doll-eyed Man himself had come to meet them. Everything about the man oozed malevolence, and he immediately took a defensive stance, his shadow wriggling about the floor in the dim lighting.

The man simply grinned at the teenagers, skilfully evading another haphazard fireball. He moved in a strange, jerky manner which seemed to be both elegant and awkward. In fact, his motion seemed almost independent of his body, something which was both puzzling and disturbing. Thinking fast, Rip forced his shadow to slink up his arm and jut outward in spikes, directing them at the Doll-eyed Man. However, his attack was also evaded, and the strange foe continued to draw closer. Several attempts were made to strike their enemy, but none of them proved fruitful; soon enough, both teens had been forced into the corner. Panic was beginning to overtake Rip's thoughts, just as it had already taken over Griselda's.

The man drew closer still, a strange purple aura beginning to form about his body. Without thinking, Rip grabbed Griselda by the wrist and sunk into his shadow, pulling her through with him into the street outside the store. Almost immediately, the man was at the door, pushing it open with a choppy thrust and ambling out of the building. Neither teen had to say anything in order to understand what they needed to do; they had to run. Footfall after footfall, the teens ran down the street, pushing through the crowds as they tried to put distance between them and their pursuer. However, the Doll-eyed Man was still right behind them, easily slipping through the flocks of people filling the streets.

Rip and Griselda continued to run, fear impairing their judgement and rational thought capacity. Logically, Rip could have simply teleported the two of them farther away – to the Loonatics' headquarters, for example – but that thought had simply slipped their minds. Rational thought wasn't easy to come by when adrenaline and fear had taken the pilot's seat. Eventually, the teens had run into the construction site, where they were hopelessly cornered. The only things that were still around where a small set of unused I-beams and wheelbarrows, all of which would eventually vacate the premises now that the building was nearly complete. As if on cue, the Doll-eyed Man arrived, standing at the gate ominously.

Thinking quickly, or perhaps not thinking at all, Rip made his shadow snake across the ground, quickly ensnaring an I-beam in its ethereal tendrils. Then, with all the force he could muster, the roadrunner tossed the beam, watching as it sailed through the air. To his surprise, the beam connected with the man, a loud splintering noise reaching their ears as the man was knocked off his feet and into the street a few feet away. Immediately after the impact, the curious purple energy seemed to burst from the man's body, shooting past the two teens and away from the scene. Panting heavily, Griselda and Rip cautiously moved toward the Doll-eyed Man, gasping audibly at what they saw.

Calling him the doll-eyed man was an incredibly accurate statement. It appeared that the man was merely a mannequin, a wooden dummy with poorly constructed joints and a permanent smile. However, if that was the case, then that meant the criminal they had been searching for was really the bizarre, glowing globule of purple energy. Rip groaned after understanding the situation, smacking himself in the forehead and sinking to his rear in frustration. Griselda simply sat down next to him, evidently confused by everything that had just occurred.

"I'm never doing another séance again," Griselda announced, glancing briefly at Rip. For some reason, the comment broke the tension, and the roadrunner couldn't help but burst into laughter. After a second or two, the girl joined him, and the two laughed heartily for a few moments. When the laughter subsided, they retained their smiles, although they were certainly more subdued than the ones they'd worn only seconds before.

"My nametag is wrong," Griselda said suddenly, deciding at that moment to convey an afterthought, "My name's Julie. The owner of the store just wanted me to use a name that seemed fitting with the store. He's an odd son of a bitch."

"I'm Rip," He replied, smiling at the young woman. The two conversed briefly, and eventually went their separate ways, the roadrunner leaving with the horribly damaged mannequin. They'd decided to hang out again sometime, although they couldn't make any guarantees about a time. After all, Rip was going to be busy trying to find a way to bring their strange enemy to justice.

* * *

"Where've you been, Rip? You're three hours and 27 minutes late for your tutoring," Tech said, irritation evident in his voice as he worked on some device at his workbench, "I understand that you were upset about earlier, but you can't just hide in your room until you feel like—" The coyote's speech was interrupted by Rip slamming the wooden mannequin onto the table, eliciting a yelp from the green, furry genius. Rip just grinned at the older male, who looked questioningly at the teen and the figure, eyes darting several times between the two.

"I found our doll-eyed man," Rip explained, "And I don't think that a normal jail's going to keep him under wraps for long." Thus, Rip continued his explanations, recounting all the events that had occurred in the last few hours. Tech merely nodded at every statement, clearly deep in thought. However, after a moment, he rummaged through his desk and pulled out a few sheets of paper and some pencils and erasers.

"I'm going to have to work on an energy containment field, if this guy really is an energy being," Tech sighed, rubbing his temples before setting to work on sketches, "You should probably go get some rest, Rip; you sound like you're getting a little hoarse."

"Yeah, it's probably from all the running I did. I think I might be coming down with a cold too, though, so I'm not sure," Rip shrugged, sticking his hands in his pockets, "What about my classes? You were just babbling on about how I was late for them."

"Forget the classes for now; we need this thing down ASAP if we're going to catch this guy. Besides, you've obviously been through quite a bit today. Go get some rest," Tech said, his tone indicating the termination of the conversation. Rip just shrugged and nodded, leaving the lab to the genius. He groaned softly, the toll of all his running and his imminent illness catching up with him. If there was ever a time when he felt horribly unwell, that time was easily overshadowed by the aches he was experiencing. The teen gingerly moved toward his bedroom, simply flopping down onto his bed. Within moments of hitting his pillow, he was asleep, although it wasn't going to be peaceful by any means.

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Well, there's chapter 11. It's a bit shorter than the last couple chapters I've done, but I hope it was good enough for you. I'm planning on including a proper tutelage scene, but I can't guarantee that it'll occur; it's mostly a minor detail which I didn't really plan on focusing on. Anyway, I hope you enjoyed it, and I hope you stick around for the conclusion!


	12. Chapter 12

Hey everyone! I'm glad you guys have been remembering my story. XD It's quite a strange feeling when you see that people are still visiting your stuff even when you haven't updated for a while. In any case, this update's been long overdue, and I'm sorry I took so long. Of course, I think it's fair that I focused on my studies, but I digress. On with the fic!

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Rev yawned as quietly as he could, stretching out on his bed. Rip had caught a nasty case of laryngitis, and was trying his best to rest. Of course, he had to make routine checks to make sure his brother remained in bed, but that wasn't always so bad. The roadrunner quietly tiptoed out of his bedroom after making his bed, making sure the door shut behind him without a sound. It was late – around 2:30 AM, if his clock was right – and he had started to feel a little hungry. Usually, he would've waited until the morning, but he figured a midnight – or was it midmorning? – snack couldn't hurt. Hoping not to awaken anyone else, he continued tiptoeing into the kitchen, where he flicked on the lights and began rummaging through the refrigerator. Of course, in his desperate search for food, the noise factor was forgotten, and he unintentionally made quite a stir searching for something to eat. Fortunately, no one woke up and started yelling at the eager superhero, despite all the shuffling of fridge contents he had to do. After all, how else would he have been able to reach the pickles? After he closed the fridge door, Rev carefully felt his way over to the cutlery drawer, plucking a long fork from its depths. His attention was then returned to the pickle jar, which he then attempted to open. However, the attempts were for naught; the lid was stuck.

Fortunately, he knew just the person to see about the slight snag; Tech was more than likely awake, especially after Rip's run-in with their strange new foe. If anyone could open the pickle jar, it was his coyote friend. Of course, using his abilities was technically cheating, but when one wanted pickles, one wanted them immediately. So, after carefully tucking the pickle jar under his arm, Rev dashed off to Tech's lab, arriving there in an instant. Straightening out his pyjamas, he was about to enter Tech's lab before he realized he'd lost his nightcap on the way over. Sighing, the avian put down the pickle jar and rushed back along his path, easily retrieving his hat. With that done, he sped back to the lab and put his hat on, entering the room with the pickle jar tucked beneath his arm. Just as he'd been expecting, his friend was at his lab, studying broken chunks of the doll.

"Hey-Tech-how's-your-research-coming-along-I-mean-you've-gotta-be-getting-closer-to-an-answer-since-it's-been-a-few-days-and-you're-pretty-smart-after-all-and-hey-while-I'm-here-would-you-mind-helping-me-open-this-jar-because-man-oh-man-is-the-lid-stuck!" Rev said in one breath, smiling at his seated companion. Tech had jumped in surprise when the bird had started talking, but eventually seemed to resign himself to the fact that he had company. With a sigh, the coyote's hand began to glow light green, and the lid twisted off easily, finding a new spot on the lab bench.

"Thank-you-very-much, Tech." Rev smiled, jabbing the fork into the pickle jar and removing the first gherkin he'd stabbed. The coyote smiled back softly, although he returned his eyes back to the abandoned microscope.

"I haven't really found out much yet, Rev," Tech explained, turning a few knobs on the microscope to focus it, "The dummy seems to be a normal, everyday dummy. Nothing special about it. But, I was able to find a very interesting viscous liquid on the mannequin where Rip said the purple energy shot out from."

"Oh-you-mean-like-ectoplasm? Are-we-dealing-with-a-ghost-or-something-Tech-because-I-ain't-afraid-of-no-ghosts. Oh! Or-maybe-it's-some-weird-kind-of-alien-life-form, like-some-spectral-energy-being-or-something! Oh-man, that'd-be-sweet!" Rev theorized, making strange hand gestures as he spoke to convey his message. Of course, since Tech hadn't been looking, they were superfluous, but the roadrunner found them entertaining.

"Well, let's hope it's nothing too crazy like that," Tech chuckled, a small smile forming on his face, "In any case, I've just been trying to track down who could be producing these dolls. Maybe they're the product of a scientific experiment, and are being brought to life by some mad doctor? Of course, they could just be regular mannequins, which would mean there's only one of those purple energy beings around. Which means, I'll have to resort to this little baby." The coyote grinned and opened up the bench's drawer, pulling out a gelatinous cube and a set of blueprints.

"Ooh-what-is-it-Tech? It-looks-kinda-gooey. Are-you-sure-it'll-work? What-does-it-do? It-looks-kinda-like-a-" Rev began, although he was quickly silenced by Tech's firm grip on his beak.

"It's an Ectoplasm Sensitive Electromagnetic Snare," Tech explained, grinning proudly at his eager friend, "It's a spring-loaded trap which should be able to catch just about anything. All we need to do is find a way to lure the mote into a location where we can catch it. Of course, that's if I'm not right about it just being some mad scientist's pet project." Rev nodded, highly tempted to touch the gooey device. However, he knew Tech wouldn't appreciate it if he accidentally activated it. Plus, given the fact that it was an electromagnetic snare, he was certain it would depower most of the coyote's lab. It would definitely be more than a minor hindrance. These thoughts were interrupted when the coyote yawned loudly, stretching and popping his vertebrae. He had obviously been in the lab for a long time; it was probable that he hadn't left it other than to grab a snack or relieve himself.

"Alright-Tech, I-think-it's-time-you-got-some-rest. I'm-sure-you'll-probably-be-able-to-think-better-once-you've-rested-and-that-reminds-me; you-should-probably have-something-to-eat-because-I-know-you-haven't-eaten-in-hours." Rev rambled, jabbing the fork into the jar and retrieving another pickle. He held the former cucumber in front of the coyote's face, tempted to push it against the canid's nose.

"I'm not eating that." Tech said curtly, crossing his arms, "And I'm not going to sleep any time soon either. After all, I think I'm getting close to a breakthrough and I'd like to-" His sentence remained unfinished, as Rev didn't feel like listening to Tech's argument and had instead stuffed the pickle into his friend's mouth. The coyote glared at his friend, and was about to spit it out before he noticed the look in the bird's eye. Rev's concerned expression made him resign himself to his fate, although he chewed the pickle slowly as a weak protest. Once the food had been masticated and ingested, the roadrunner pulled his friend out of the chair and dragged him out of the lab. Of course, he ended up going back for the pickle jar; he knew that Tech hated it when he left food in the lab. After a brief visit to the kitchen, the roadrunner led the coyote back to his bedroom, gently moving blueprints and unfinished gadgets aside with his foot.

Tech slowly plodded back to his bed, sitting down on it and looking curiously at Rev. The roadrunner wasn't sure why at first, although he understood that Tech needed to change into his pyjamas after a few seconds. Smiling, he simply turned his back and covered his eyes, unable to feel the burning glare the coyote was shooting at him.

"Okay, now you're just being ridiculous, Rev," Tech grumbled, folding his arms over his chest, "I'm not getting changed while you're in here."

"C'mon-Tech-I'm-not-looking-and-I-promise-I-won't-peek-since-you're-obviously-so-self-conscious," Rev laughed playfully, unable to notice his friend's uncomfortable fidgeting.

"I'm not self-conscious," Tech said defensively, faltering briefly as he spoke, "I just don't really feel comfortable getting semi-nude with a friend in the room."

"You-had-to-get-semi-nude-in-gym-class-with-a-whole-bunch-of-guys-you-didn't-like, so-suck-it-up, Barbie," Rev grinned, the playful tone of voice ever present. Tech sighed again, unable to find a good counterpoint to make. Without another argument, the coyote stood up and shuffled over to his closet, pulling his pyjamas from its dark recesses. He felt a little nervous about undressing in front of Rev, but with his friend's promise not to peek, he quickly peeled off his uniform, now stripped down to a simple pair of briefs. As quickly as he could, the coyote put his supersuit into the closet, and began pulling his pyjamas on with incredible haste. Rev could have done so much quicker, but he neither wanted nor needed the roadrunner's help to get dressed. Clearing his throat as a sign that he was finished, he soon found himself looking into his friend's kind, green eyes.

"Alright, now get into bed." Rev said softly, speaking at a normal speed to make sure he couldn't be misconstrued. Tech nodded obediently, although he simply flopped on top of his bed. The roadrunner put his hands on his hips, glaring at the coyote. He knew that Tech wouldn't go to sleep if he left him like that; it wouldn't be hard to slip back into his uniform and slink back into the lab. His friend simply shrugged his shoulders, giving his friend a smug grin. It encapsulated the phrase "what're you gonna do about it?" So, Rev decided that he was going to have to get physical if he wanted to make sure that his friend got some much needed sleep. With feverish speed, he wrestled the coyote into his bed, and tucked in the sheets as tightly as he could. Tech's cry of surprise was enough to make the Rev laugh heartily, although he had to stop after seeing his friend's glare. While that made it harder for him to keep from laughing again, he managed to cut it down to a few quiet snickers.

"I-guess-all-that's-left-to-do-now-is-to-make-sure-you-stay-in-bed-and-finally-get-some-sleep." Rev grinned, ruffling his friend's fur, "I'll-be-right-back-with-a-chair." True to his word, Rev was in and out in a matter of seconds, now seated at Tech's beside.

"You know Rev, this is completely unnecessary. I don't need to you to do all this; I can rest once we've caught this guy and-" Tech began, although Rev clamped his friend's muzzle shut.

"Obviously, I have to." Rev said, once again assuming a normal vocal speed, "After all, you could use the rest. Plus, you could use a little refresher. Once you've slept some more, I'm sure you'll be able to think up a brilliant way to catch this guy. Besides, sleeping in the lab all the time can't be good for your back. Now go to sleep." He grinned at his friend, folding his arms over his chest and crossing his legs. Tech sighed again, knowing that his friend wouldn't let up until he'd finally gone to sleep. The coyote rolled over onto his side, giving the roadrunner a sheepish look from his trapped state under the covers.

"Um... Rev... Would you mind... well... would you mind plugging in that miniature lamp over there?" Tech asked, trying his hardest not to make eye contact. Rev looked a little confused for a moment, although he quickly found what his friend was talking about. The coyote had been referring to a sparse looking nightlight; a simple, ovate bulb lying on the floor in a forlorn way. As tempting as it was to chuckle about the little security item, he did as Tech requested, plugging in the bulb and seating himself by his friend's bed again.

"...Thanks, Rev." Tech smiled appreciatively, obviously relieved that his friend hadn't laughed at him.

"No problem, Tech." Rev replied, smiling back at his cozy pal, "And I know what you're thinking; don't worry about it. I promise I won't tell Duck. I'd pinkie swear you, but then I'd risk you escaping into the lab." Tech just chuckled quietly, turning onto his left side and looking over at the wall.

"G'night, Rev." Tech mumbled, yawning again and curling up under the sheets.

"Good night, Tech." Rev replied, yawning a few minutes after his friend. It only took a few minutes before Tech's breathing became slower, and after about ten minutes, the coyote was fast asleep. Rev stood up from his chair, taking a peek over at his friend's face. He found himself stifling another laugh, as he'd found that Tech was sucking his thumb. After successfully stifling his urge to laugh, he found himself looking rather longingly at his friend. Secretly, he'd been hoping that they'd stay up for a few hours talking about scientific things, or his latest experiments. However, he was just glad that Tech had fallen asleep; it was obvious that he was exhausted.

Now that he was sure Tech was asleep, he quickly looked around his friend's room for security cameras. He knew for a fact that Tech would be upset if he knew that he'd peeked. It was just too tempting for the poor bird; plus, Tech's tail was just so... bushy. It was hard to explain why he'd felt so compelled to look. In all honesty, even he wasn't sure why he'd done it. The feelings were strange to him, but he knew he'd had them for at least a few months. What would Tech say if he told him? What would his parents say if they knew he'd developed feelings for another man, and a coyote, no less? He was more worried about the latter situation than the former, but it was a private dilemma. When the time came, he'd address it. In the meantime, he found himself looking lovingly at the sleeping face of the object of his affection. With one last furtive glance around the room, he leaned over and kissed Tech on the cheek, before pulling back and leaving the room. In his rush to leave, he'd completely forgotten about the chair, but at that point, he didn't care. After all, he'd stolen a kiss from his favourite coyote.

* * *

I hope this was worth the wait, guys. D: If the workload this semester is light, I'll be able to finish it in a few weeks. If it's not, though, I'll probably end up finishing it sometime in April. Hopefully, it won't come to that, but I'd like to at least warn you in case I leave you hanging again. Anyway, have a Happy New Year, everyone, and I hope you all had a happy non-denominational holiday! :3


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